[Videothoracoscopy in the diagnosis and treatment of hemothorax]

Video assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) has assumed greater importance in the management of pleural diseases. From 1994 to 1998 the Authors report their experience about 11 cases of hemothoraces depending on various causes: 6 hemothoraces and 3 hemopneumothoraces, some spontaneous or iatrogenic, others in patients with chest trauma; 2 clotted hemothoraces. All patients were studied by VAT detecting the source of bleeding in 6 cases of acute hemothorax and in 3 cases of acute hemopneumothorax; in 5 cases the lesions were successfully repaired with thoracoscopic technique. In others 4 patients the VATS approach was converted to thoracotomy for the seriousness of lesions: 3 acute hemothoraces (1 patient with penetrating thoracic firearms injury, 1 patient with extended lung laceration, 1 patient with iatrogenic lesion of right subclavian artery); 1 acute hemopneumothorax in one patient with penetrating thoracic firearms injury and left hemidiaphragmatic double perforation: in this case laparotomy was also operated in order to exclude others abdominal lesions. 2 cases of clotted hemothorax were operated by VATS performing the removal of clots after their fragmentation by endobabcock and pleural irrigation-aspiration with physiological solution. No procedure related complications were occurred. The authors conclude that the video-thoracoscopic approach is certainly advantageous for the management of spontaneous, traumatic or iatrogenic acute hemothoraces. This technique permits, with minimal traumatism and very little complications, the correct therapeutic programming (VATS operation or conversion to thoracotomy). However some hemothoraces (hemothoraces in patients with serious cranial trauma, with spleen rupture, with great vessels rupture, with heart rupture or with massive post-operating hemothorax) contro-indicate the thoracoscopic treatment: immediate thoracotomy and/or laparotomy, in these cases, is indispensable. In the treatment of clotted hemothoraces the VATS is a favourable alternative to thoracotomy, reforming the pleural cavity with minimal traumatism and avoiding tardive complications.