Chest-Wall Collateral Embolization to Reduce Surgical Blood Loss in Peripheral Aspergillomas

The objective of this study was to present the procedural details and digital subtraction angiography (DSA) findings of perioperative chest-wall collateral embolization (PCCE) and compare intraoperative blood loss in patients of pulmonary aspergilloma (PA) undergoing lung resection with and without PCCE.

Since November 2017, we have performed PCCE in 17 patients (14 males, three females, age 34.41 ± 12.85 years) before surgery for PA (embolization group). Retrospective evaluation of these patients was done, DSA findings were noted, and perioperative parameters (surgical approach, extent of resection, operative time, blood loss, blood transfusion, morbidity grade, and length of post-operative stay) were compared with a comparative cohort of 24 patients of PA (21 males, three females, mean age 36.13 ± 12.58 years) who underwent thoracic surgery without PCCE (May 2013-November 2017) (control group) using the Mann-Whitney U test.

A total of 55 arteries were embolized in 17 patients (mean 3.23 arteries per patient). Technical success could be achieved in all patients without any procedure-related complications. The most common arteries embolized were posterior intercostal arteries (29) followed by costocervical trunk (10), superior thoracic (8), lateral thoracic (5), and internal thoracic arteries (3). The mean blood loss was significantly lower in the embolization group compared with the control group (676.47 vs. 1,264.58 mL, p = 0.015). Within the embolization group, patients who underwent video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery had even lower blood loss compared with open surgery cases (466 vs. 887.50 mL, p-value = 0.046).

PCCE is a simple and safe procedure, useful in reducing intra-operative blood loss in patients undergoing surgery for peripherally located PA.