During thoracoscopic segmentectomy, where direct palpation of the tumour is not always possible, achieving adequate margins from the cancer is of crucial importance. It is thus mandatory to accurately identify the intersegmental plane (ISP). Indeed, inadequate determination and division of the ISP can lead to unsatisfactory oncological results. Our systematic review focused on the effectiveness of the different techniques for identifying the ISP, highlighting the fact that a 1-size-fits-all method is not feasible. Based on the published evidence, 6 main methods were reported, each with its pros and cons: inflation–deflation technique, selective resected segmental inflation, systemic injection of indocyanine green, injection of endobronchial dye, 3-dimensional simulation using multidetector computed tomography and virtual-assisted lung mapping. In conclusion, ISP demarcation is mandatory to achieve a high rate of success of thoracoscopic segmentectomy, and it is very helpful in surgical planning, especially when preoperative multidetector computed tomography and 3-dimensional reconstructions are routinely performed.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide with an overall 5-year survival rate of 17% after diagnoses. Indeed many patients tend to have a very poor prognosis, due to being diagnosed at an advanced stage. Conversely patients who are diagnosed at an early stage have a 5-year survival >70%, indicating that early detection of lung cancer is crucial to improve survival. Although flexible bronchoscopy is a relatively non-invasive procedure for patients suspected of having lung cancer, only 29% of carcinoma in situ (CIS) and 69% of microinvasive tumors were detectable using white light bronchoscopy (WLB) alone. As a result, in the past two decades, new bronchoscopic techniques have been developed to increase the yield and diagnostic accuracy, such as autofluorescence bronchoscopy (AFB), narrow band imaging (NBI) and high magnification bronchovideoscopy (HMB). However, due to the low specificity and the limitation to detect only proximal bronchial tree, new probe-based technologies have been introduced: radial endobronchial ultrasound (R-EBUS), optical coherence tomography (OCT), confocal laser endomicroscopy (CLE) and laser Raman spectroscopy (LRS). To date, although tissue biopsy remains the gold standard for diagnosing malignant/premalignant airway disease and some techniques are still investigational, bronchoscopic technologies can be considered the safest and most accurate tools to evaluate both central and distal airway mucosa.

Although some patients are currently referred with a severely advanced disease, the indication for tracheotomy, salvage procedures or supportive care has decreased over time. Resection is feasible for differentiated tumors with an overall good outcome.

Many studies have confirmed that the implementation of enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols has the advantages of reducing the potential complications after thoracic surgery and the length of hospital stay. The ERAS program involves a multidisciplinary team, aimed at integrating evidence-based knowledge into clinical practice in order to reduce the patient's stress response to the surgical procedure and improve the response to stress, guaranteeing a combination of better outcomes and cost savings. All this would not be possible without the improvement of minimally invasive surgical techniques, progression of anesthesia, pain control, and careful patient preparation. In this setting, a preoperative personal counselling may play a key role to reduce stress, fear or anxiety and improve the morbidity of patients, enabling them to achieve functional and psychological compensatory mechanisms more quickly. Preoperative patient counselling, performed using verbal, written or multimedia materials, is crucial in order to achieve the goal of the ERAS project: making the patient a potentially active participant and the main character of his recovery, able to positively impact himself throughout the surgical and healing process. This report is aimed at evaluating patient information and care-plans in thoracic surgery, reviewing the available evidence on ERAS pathways, and demonstrating our ideal program as discussed and shared among the Italian Thoracic Surgery Units accredited in the video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) group.

tPLB seems to be an effective and feasible procedure, accompanied by a low risk of pneumothorax in UPLN cases.

Our results show that BNP elevation, measured in the first days after thoracic surgery, is independently associated with postoperative adverse events. In patients undergoing major pulmonary resections, a postoperative BNP elevation is the strongest independent predictor of cardiopulmonary complications.

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BackgroundPrimary malignant tracheal tumors account for only 0.2 % of all malignancies of the respiratory tract. Tracheal chondrosarcoma is a rare condition and only 17 cases have been described in the literature from 1965 to date. Herein we report the very unusual case of a patient with a tracheal chondrosarcoma, electively treated by curative surgery despite the virtually complete obstruction of the airway.Case presentationWe present the case of a 79-year old Caucasian man with long-lasting wheezing misdiagnosed as asthma and affected by a tracheal chondrosarcoma almost completely obstructing the airway. Videobronchoscopy and imaging investigations revealed a well-circumscribed mass arising from the cartilaginous rings of the cervical trachea with a posterior residual respiratory space of about 1 mm. Because of the mobility and flaccidity of the uninvolved pars membranacea, the tiny respiratory space slightly expanded during inspiration and expiration allowing the patient to be treated without an essential emergency procedure. Standard tracheal intubation was impossible. Rigid bronchoscopy enabled placement of a small tracheal tube distally to the tumor. Successful cervical tracheal resection and reconstruction was then performed, achieving complete tumor excision. Histologically, the mass was characterized as a low-grade tracheal chondrosarcoma. Videobronchoscopy performed 9 months after surgery showed a wide, well healed tracheal anastomosis. Ten months after surgery, the patient is alive and disease free.ConclusionComplete surgical resection is the treatment of choice for tracheal chondrosarcoma. Rigid bronchoscopy is an essential tool for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. It allows the palliative maneuvers for obstruction relief but also, in resectable patients, the intraoperative safe and straightforward management of the obstructed airway.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13019-016-0498-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.