This retrospective study was conducted at the Department of Surgery of BLDE DU Shri B M Patil Medical College from May 2015 to August 2020. Institutional ethical approval was obtained (BLDE(DU)/IEC/481/2020-21). Patients diagnosed with empyema Thoracis who underwent thoracotomy decortication by VATS or open procedure and by VATS converted to open thoracotomy were included. Patients diagnosed with empyema Thoracis who were treated with non-surgical modalities were excluded from the study. Patients with a disease duration ≤3 weeks underwent VATS decortications, whereas those with a disease duration >6 weeks underwent thoracotomy decortication. The type of surgery for those with a disease duration between 3 and 6 weeks was left to the discretion of the surgical team. The same surgical team performed the surgeries. The patients’ characteristics were noted, including age, sex, duration of symptoms, etiology of the disease, associated complications such as bronchopleural fistula, time from the onset of the disease to surgical intervention, type of procedure, cause for conversion from VATS to thoracotomy (if any), attainment of complete decortication, lung compliance post-procedure, morbidity with respect to post-operative complications, persistence of air leak, duration of hospital stays after surgery, and mortality.
Author(s) Details:
Vikram Sindgikar,
Department of General Surgery, BLDEDU’s Shri B M Patil Medical College Hospital, Vijayapur, Karnataka, India.
Tejaswini Vallabha,
Department of General Surgery, BLDEDU’s Shri B M Patil Medical College Hospital, Vijayapur, Karnataka, India.
Mallikarjun Patil,
Department of General Surgery, BLDEDU’s Shri B M Patil Medical College Hospital, Vijayapur, Karnataka, India.
Girish Kullolli,
Department of General Surgery, BLDEDU’s Shri B M Patil Medical College Hospital, Vijayapur, Karnataka, India.
Samhitha Reddy,
Department of General Surgery, BLDEDU’s Shri B M Patil Medical College Hospital, Vijayapur, Karnataka, India.
