Video-assisted mediastinoscopy as a therapeutic tool

Video-assisted mediastinoscopy (VAM) is a well-known method for surgical exploration of superior retrovascular mediastinal disease and for determining the staging of lung cancer. This study aimed to report the authors' experience using VAM therapeutically.

Between 1998 and 2007, 765 patients had VAM in the authors' service. For 742 of these patients, VAM was used to diagnose or stage a disease. The remaining 23 patients (3%) had VAM as a therapeutic procedure. Two groups of patients were studied: those who had VAM alone and those who had VAM associated with another procedure. These studies focused on indications, results, and specific morbidity and mortality.

The VAM alone group (14 patients) underwent mediastinal lymphadenectomy for thyroid cancer (mean number of lymph nodes/positives, 16/6) (n = 4), closure of the left post-pneumonectomy bronchopleural fistula (n = 3), mediastinal cyst resection (n = 5), ectopic hyperfunctioning parathyroid resection (n = 1), and mediastinal hematoma evacuation (n = 1). This group had an operative time of 40 to 160 min and a hospital stay of 2 to 10 days. The group that had VAM associated with another approach (9 patients) had VAM during transhiatal esophagectomy for cancer (mean number of lymph nodes, 8) (n = 7), VAM combined with video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (n = 1), and minithoracotomy for masses in the aortopulmonary window (unique metastasis from melanoma or thyroid cancer) (n = 1). This group had an operative time of 60 to 135 min and a hospital stay of 7 to 52 days. No specific mortality or morbidity occurred. Meanwhile, three patients died: two after bronchopleural fistula (respiratory insufficiency, severe sepsis) and one because of liver insufficiency. Two patients experienced myocardial ischemia or pneumonia after transhiatal esophagectomy.

"Exploratory" VAM for mediastinal disease is an important training tool that can be applied further for a therapeutic purpose. The authors' experience has shown its potential. Its surgical indications and benefits deserve better identification.