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BackgroundThe purpose of this paper is to present a guideline for beginning video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) lobectomy to junior surgeons, and to review the first year experience of a new surgeon performing VATS lobectomies who had not performed a VATS lobectomy unassisted during his training period.Materials and MethodsA young surgeon opened a division of general thoracic surgery at a medical institution. The surgeon had performed about 100 lobectomies via conventional thoracotomy during his training period, but had never performed a VATS lobectomy unassisted while under the supervision of an expert. After opening the division of general thoracic surgery, the surgeon performed a total of 38 pulmonary lobectomies for various pulmonary diseases from March 2009 to February 2010. All data were collected retrospectively.ResultsThere were 14 lobectomies via thoracotomy, 14 VATS lobectomies, and 10 cases of attempted VATS lobectomies that were converted to open thoracotomies. The number of VATS lobectomies increased from the second quarter (n=0) to the third quarter (n=5). The lobectomies that were converted from VATS into thoracotomies decreased from the second quarter (n=5) to the third quarter (n=1) (p=0.002).ConclusionIt can take 6 months for young surgeons without experience in VATS lobectomy in their training period to be able to reliably perform a VATS lobectomy.

A 12-year-old female presented with the abnormal findings on the chest PA. The chest CT revealed a retrosternal defect of the diaphragm and a fatty opacity in the pleural cavity, resulting in a diagnosis of Morgagni hernia. It was decided to undergo a laparoscopic surgery. The retrosternal defect of the diaphragm measuring 3.5 cm in diameter was found, through which a portion of the greater omentum and the fatty tissue connected with the falciform ligament were herniated into the pleural cavity. The greater omentum was pushed back into the peritoneal cavity and the fatty tissue connected with falciform ligament was excised. The mediastinal pleura was plicated and the defect of the diaphragm was repaired primarily. Immediately after the operation, the patient developed a right pneumothorax for which a chest tube was inserted. She was discharged at the post-operative third day without any further complications.

A 20-year-old man presented with a femur fracture and epidural hemorrhage (EDH) following a fall. One month after fracture surgery, swelling developed in both legs, and he was diagnosed as having a deep-vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. A retrievable inferior vena cava filter (IVCF) was inserted, because EDH is a contraindication to anticoagulants. Four months later, he complained of abdominal pain, and a computed tomography scan showed a fractured IVCF strut. After percutaneous removal failed 3 times, the IVCF was surgically removed by orthopedists using a portable image intensifier without cardiopulmonary bypass.

A 68-year-old man with dyspnea and chest pain on left anterior chest during inspiration visited our hospital. An anterior mediastinal mass was detected on a chest computed tomography (CT) and we considered performing surgical treatment. Since the beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (beta-hCG) level was increased to 20.46 mIU/ml on the preoperative blood test, incisional biopsy was performed through a Chamberlain incision to rule out the mediastinal germ cell tumors. After diagnosing a benign mass on the postoperative pathological examination of the incisional biopsy specimen, total thymectomy that included the mass was performed via a full sternotomy. On the pathological examination after the second operation, the tumor was diagnosed as thymic adenocarcinoma producing beta-hCG, and the tumor had originated from the thymus.

A 18-year-old man presented to a local hospital with muscle weakness, facial edema, and a 6 kg weight gain over 2 months. After a complete work-up, he was diagnosed with pituitary Cushing syndrome and treated with a bilateral adrenalectomy for Cushing syndrome and pituitary radiotherapy for Nelson syndrome. Twenty-five years later, his ectopic source of adrenocorticotropic hormone was revealed as a pulmonary neuroendocrine tumor, and a pulmonary resection was performed. Subsequently, a biochemical and clinical remission including hyperpigmentation was achieved.

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