Pulmonary segmentectomy: results and complications

Segmentectomy is an anatomic pulmonary parenchymal-sparing resection performed for certain benign lesions and on selected patients with lung cancer. We reviewed our experience with segmentectomy in this highly select group of patients.

We retrospectively reviewed the records of 61 patients (5% of all anatomic resections) undergoing 62 segmentectomies from 1991 to 2001. Wedge resections were excluded. The operative indications were suspected or known lung cancer (43), benign disease (12), and metastatic cancer to the lung (7). Median follow-up for patients with malignancy was 28 months (range 1 to 89 months). Actuarial survival was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method.

Segmentectomy was performed in 43 lung cancer patients with pathologic stages of Ia-22, Ib-14, IIa-2, IIb-1, IIIa/IIIb-2, and IV-2. All resection margins were negative for malignancy. Segmentectomy for benign diseases included granulomatous disease (5), pulmonary abscess (2), plasmacytoma (1), and others (4). Complications occurred in 39% (24/62) of patients, including atelectasis requiring bronchoscopy (10/62, 16%), pneumonia (9/62, 14%), air leak more than 7 days (5/62, 8%), and supraventricular dysrhythmias (6/62, 10%). In-hospital mortality was 3% (2 patients). Median length of hospital stay was 6 days (range 4 to 66 days). In the lung cancer patients the locoregional recurrence rate was 0% and the distant recurrence rate was 20%. The 4-year actuarial survival for patients with lung cancer was 72%.

Pulmonary segmentectomy has acceptable morbidity and mortality in selected patients with both benign and malignant lung disease and remains a useful procedure in a thoracic surgeon's armamentarium. Distant, not locoregional recurrence, was responsible for the cancer deaths.