Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery for Pulmonary Sequestrations: Series of 35 Consecutive Patients in a Single Center.

OBJECTIVE:  The aim of this report is to summarize the experience of completely video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for pulmonary sequestration in a single center and to evaluate the long-term outcome in a larger series of patients.

METHODS:  The data of 35 pulmonary sequestrations who received completely VATS consecutively in Peking University People's Hospital between January 2008 and November 2017 were retrospectively reviewed. Twenty-three females and twelve males with an average of 38 years old were included.

RESULTS:  A total of 28 (80%) patients had preoperative symptoms; leading symptoms were recurrent infections (22), fever (11), hemoptysis (11), chest pain (9), and shortness of breath (4). Twenty-nine (82.9%) patients were intralobar pulmonary sequestration (22 in the left lower lobe, 6 in the right lower lobe, and 1 in the left upper lobe) and six (17.1%) patients were extralobar pulmonary sequestration. All the patients underwent VATS excision successfully, 26 underwent lobectomy, 2 underwent wedge resection, 1 underwent occlusion of the aberrant artery, and 6 underwent mass resection in all of those with extralobar pulmonary sequestration. The median surgery time and estimated blood loss was 150 (75-300) minutes and 50 (10-600) mL, respectively. There was no mortality. Only one patient suffered postoperative complication (recurrent laryngeal nerve injury). During the median follow-up period of 57 months, none of the patients presented recurrence.

CONCLUSIONS:  Completely VATS was a safe and effective mini-invasive procedure for pulmonary sequestration in an experienced team. Its long-term outcome was remarkable.