• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.70 no.1
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• pp.58-62
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• 2011

Pulmonary siderosis is a pneumoconiosis caused by chronic iron inhalation. A diagnosis of pulmonary siderosis is based on a patient history of iron inhalation, on chest radiographic findings, and on accumulation of iron oxide in macrophages within the lung. A typical radiographic finding of pulmonary siderosis includes ill-defined micronodules that are diffusely distributed in the lung. We experienced a 52-year-woman with a $1.3{\times}1.5$-cm mass in the left upper lobe with multiple nodules in both lungs. Because the radiographic findings were atypical, we conducted a video-assisted thorascopic lung biopsy procedure to exclude the diagnosis of metastatic lung cancer. After confirming iron deposition in the lung tissue and knowing the patient's occupational history of welding iron, we concluded that this was a case of pulmonary siderosis.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.70 no.1
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• pp.74-78
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• 2011

Herein, we report a case of recurrent pleural metastasis after complete resection of invasive thymoma that was successfully treated with surgical resection. Thymoma and thymic carcinoma are uncommon neoplasms derived from the epithelial cells of the thymus. Approximately 30% to 50% of thymomas are asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis. However, these cancers may present with constitutional or local pressure symptoms and sometimes with paraneoplastic syndromes, especially myasthenia gravis. Surgical resection is the mainstay of thymoma treatment and has been shown to remarkably improve long-term survival. Despite complete resection, local recurrences are frequent, and surgery is the cornerstone of therapy even in cases of recurrent thymoma. We experienced a 67-year-old male patient with pleural metastasis that developed 6 years after complete surgical resection of invasive thymoma. The pleural mass was excised by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. Histopathological examination revealed an invasive World Health Organization (WHO) type B2 thymoma.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.76 no.2
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• pp.88-92
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• 2014

We hereby report a case on bronchogenic cyst which is initially non-infected, then becomes infected after bronchoscopic ultrasound (US)-guided transesophageal fine-needle aspiration (FNA). The non-infected bronchogenic cyst appears to be filled with relatively echogenic materials on US, and the aspirate is a whitish jelly-like fluid. Upon contrast-enhanced MRI of the infected bronchogenic cyst, a T1-weighted image shows low signal intensity and a T2-weighted image shows high signal intensity, with no enhancements of the cyst contents, but enhancements of the thickened cystic wall. The patient then undergo video-assisted thoracic surgery 14 days after the FNA. The cystic mass is known to be completely removed, and the aspirate is yellowish and purulent. To understand the image findings that pertain to the gross appearance of the cyst contents will help to diagnose bronchogenic cysts in the future.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.63 no.1
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• pp.78-82
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• 2007

Schwannoma represents approximately 40% of neurogenic tumors arising in the mediastinum, and develops along the sympathetic or parasympathetic chain, intercostals nerve, and spinal ganglia. It is usually asymptomatic, and is confronted accidentally but can produce chest pain, cough and dyspnea. However, dyspnea with pleural effusion is rare in patients with benign schwannoma. We encountered two cases of benign schwannoma with pleural effusion. Both cases had similar initial symptoms and the characteristics of a mass but the characteristics of pleural effusion analysis were different. The benign schwannoma was confirmed in two cases using VATS (video-assisted tharawswpic surgery).

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.75 no.5
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• pp.222-224
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• 2013

Giant bullae are large bullae occupying at least one-third of the hemithorax and surgical bullectomy is the treatment of choice. We report a case with symptomatic giant bullae which were resected successfully. A 35-year-old man presented with bilateral giant bullae that occupied almost the entire left hemithorax and a third of the right hemithorax. He was a current smoker with a 30 pack-year history and he presented with dyspnea on exertion. An elective surgical bullectomy was performed with video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. The patient recovered without any adverse events and stayed well for 1 month after surgery.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.351-355
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• 2001

개흉술에 의한 수술적 폐쇄방법 및 경도관 동맥관 폐쇄술은 동맥관 개존중의 치료방법으로 발전되어 왔으나, 이러한 술식은 개흉술에 의한 합병증, 지속적인 단락 및 용혈의 가능성, 기구의 이동이나 색전증의 발생, 지속적인 단락시 세균성 심내막염 방지를 위한 지속적인 항생제 사용등의 단점이 있어 저자들은 흉강경을 이용한 수술을 시행하였다. 총 6례의 환자에서 흉강경을 이용한 동맥관 개존증 수술을 시행하였으며. 이중 대동맥 외막(adventitia) 박리중 지형이 잘 되지 않았던 1례에서는 소개흉술(minithoracotomy)로 전환하였다. 술 후 이시행한 이학적 검사상에서 모든 환아에 심잡음이 소실되었음을 확인할 수 있었으며, 흉부 방사선 검사상 점진적인 폐혈관음영의 감소를 관찰할 수 있었으며 수술중 동맥관 파열이나 불완전한 동맥관 폐쇄, 기흉, 애성(hoarseness) 등의 합병증은 발생되지 않았다. 환아들은 술후 평균 3.4일째 퇴원하였으며, 퇴원후 외래추적 관찰검사시 시행한 심초음파 검사상 동맥관의 재개통이나, 잔류단락은 관찰되지 않았다. 본원에서는 개흉술 및 경도관 동맥관 폐쇄술의 단점을 방지할수 있으며, 성공적인 동맥관 폐쇄, 작은 피부절개 반흔에 의한 미용적 효과, 짧은 재원기간등의 장점을 가진 흉강경을 이용항 동맥관 결찰술을 시해앟여 문헌 고찰과 함께 보고하는 바이다.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.39-43
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• 2011

Background: Pulmonary sclerosing hemangioma is a rare thoracic tumor, and pathophysiology or clinical course of this tumor is not yet fully described. Furthermore, there is no consensus on the standard operative procedure for this tumor. Material and Methods: Medical records of thirty-two patients, who underwent surgical resection of pulmonary sclerosing hemangioma from 1996 to 2007, were retrospectively reviewed. Results: Nineteen patients underwent lobectomy and thirteen patients underwent limited resection. Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery was performed in 9 patients in the latter group. Lymph node dissection was done in 21 patients, and one patient was found to have lymph node metastasis of the tumor. There was no postoperative complication, no early death and no tumor-related late mortality. The mean follow-up duration was 39.3 months (2 months~129 months), and all patients were free of local recurrence and distant metastasis during this period. There was no significant difference in patient's characteristics between the two groups, except that the mean hospital stay was shorter in limited resection group than in lobectomy group (p=0.0031). Conclusion: Pulmonary sclerosing hemangioma usually requires surgical resection for both diagnosis and treatment. Limited resection can decrease hospital stay with a surgical outcome comparable to lobectomy, and may be preferred to lobectomy if sufficient resection margin can be achieved.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.42 no.6
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• pp.785-788
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• 2009

Many patients with upper abdominal organ cancers, including pancreatic cancer, suffer from severe pain, and various methods and techniques have been used for relieving this pain. We present here two cases of patients with pancreatic cancer and they were both successfully relieved of their abdominal pain by performing video-assisted thoracoscopic sympathectomy and splanchnicectomy. This minimally invasive procedure offers promise in carefully selected patients with severe pain from pancreatic cancer and other conditions.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.82 no.4
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• pp.269-276
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• 2019

Idiopathic interstitial pneumonia (IIP) is a histologically identifiable pulmonary disease without a known cause that usually infiltrates the lung interstitium. IIP is largely classified into idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, idiopathic non-specific interstitial pneumonia, respiratory bronchiolitis-interstitial lung disease (ILD), cryptogenic organizing pneumonia, desquamative interstitial pneumonia, and acute interstitial pneumonia. Each of these diseases has a different prognosis and requires specific treatment, and a multidisciplinary approach that combines chest high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT), histological findings, and clinical findings is necessary for their diagnosis. Diagnosis of IIP is made based on clinical presentation, chest HRCT findings, results of pulmonary function tests, and histological findings. For histological diagnosis, video-assisted thoracoscopic biopsy and transbronchial lung biopsy are used. In order to identify ILD associated with connective tissue disease, autoimmune antibody tests may also be necessary. Many biomarkers associated with disease prognosis have been recently discovered, and future research on their clinical significance is necessary. The diagnosis of ILD is difficult because patterns of ILD are both complicated and variable. Therefore, as with other diseases, accurate history taking and meticulous physical examination are crucial.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.54 no.6
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• pp.466-472
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• 2021

Background: Major intraoperative hemorrhage reportedly predicts unfavorable survival outcomes following surgical resection for esophageal carcinoma (EC). However, the factors predicting the amount of blood lost during thoracoscopic esophagectomy have yet to be sufficiently studied. We sought to identify risk factors for excessive blood loss during video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for EC. Methods: Using simple and multiple linear regression models, we performed retrospective analyses of the associations between clinicopathological/surgical factors and estimated hemorrhagic volume in 168 consecutive patients who underwent VATS-type esophagectomy for EC. Results: The median blood loss amount was 225 mL (interquartile range, 126-380 mL). Abdominal laparotomy (p<0.001), thoracic duct resection (p=0.014), and division of the azygos arch (p<0.001) were significantly related to high volumes of blood loss. Body mass index and operative duration, as continuous variables, were also correlated positively with blood loss volume in simple linear regression. The multiple linear regression analysis identified prolonged operative duration (p<0.001), open laparotomy approach (p=0.003), azygos arch division (p=0.005), and high body mass index (p=0.014) as independent predictors of higher hemorrhage amounts during VATS esophagectomy. Conclusion: As well as body mass index, operation-related factors such as operative duration, open laparotomy, and division of the azygos arch were independently predictive of estimated blood loss during VATS esophagectomy for EC. Laparoscopic abdominal procedures and azygos arch preservation might be minimally invasive options that would potentially reduce intraoperative hemorrhage, although oncological radicality remains an important consideration.