One-port videothoracoscopic surgical intervention.

Area of Science:

• Thoracic Surgery
• Minimally Invasive Procedures
• Surgical Innovation

Background:

• One-port video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) is emerging as an alternative to conventional 3-port VATS.
• The trend in thoracic surgery is towards reducing ports to minimize patient discomfort and hospital stay.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the feasibility and safety of one-port VATS.
• To assess patient outcomes, including pain and paresthesia, following one-port VATS procedures.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective evaluation of 98 patients who underwent one-port VATS between 2007 and 2010.
• A single 2.5 cm incision was used, with both camera and instruments introduced through a flexible port.
• Patient characteristics, visual analog scores, and postoperative paresthesia were analyzed.

Main Results:

• The study included 98 patients (38 female, 60 male; mean age 49.1 years).
• Procedures included pleural biopsies (78.6%), pleurectomy (12.4%), and wedge resection (3.8%).
• No major complications were observed; 82.3% of benign pathology patients reported no pain, with minor discomfort in some.

Conclusions:

• One-port VATS is a feasible and safe option for selected thoracic surgical interventions.
• This approach offers potential benefits over conventional multi-port techniques in terms of patient recovery.