Inframammary approach for addressing anterior mediastinal tumours: initial experience

Anterior mediastinal tumours account for 50% of all mediastinal masses. Surgical intervention is the standard approach for their diagnosis or treatment. Minimally invasive techniques have gained significant popularity in the last few decades due to the obvious advantages that they offer. We will describe a series composed of the first 20 patients who were submitted to a new minimally invasive video-assisted technique, which uses an inframammary incision approach involving a Thoratrak rib spreader and a Rultract Skyhook retractor.

A retrospective study was undertaken, involving all the patients in our department who were submitted to a resection of their anterior mediastinal masses by inframammary incision, using a Thoratrak rib spreader, a Rultract Skyhook retractor and video assistance.

A total of 20 patients were included, with a mean age of 52.6. The mean surgery duration was 47 minutes, with an intraoperative blood loss of 70 mL. The mean period of hospitalisation was 2.9 days. No patients underwent conversion to open surgery, and there were no major complications. The mean size of the masses that were excised was 13.9 cm, with a mean weight of 77.3 g. The surgical margins were all free of tumour tissue, and no early recurrence was observed during the postoperative follow-up period.

Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) and robot assisted thoracic surgery (RATS) account for most of the minimally invasive procedures. However, VATS has certain limitations in terms of deep perception and manoeuvrability, and RATS has the disadvantage of lacking tactile and force feedback for the surgeon. The inframammary technique allows for safe direct dissection around the vascular and nervous structures, ensuring a complete observation of the anterior mediastinum and its structures. The findings in the present study suggest that this technique is useful. We had good surgical results, short surgery times and very low blood loss, and all tumours were totally resected, with tumour-free surgical margins. The size and the right lateralisation of the mass did not present any contraindications, and the learning curve and investment were minimal. In conclusion, the inframammary approach could be a safe and useful approach for treating anterior mediastinal pathology.