Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 26, 2025
08:21
Orthotopic Left Lung Transplantation in Rats
Published on: July 3, 2025
128
Left-Sided Double-Lumen Tube vs EZ-Blocker for One-Lung Ventilation in Thoracic Surgery: A Systematic Review and
Nicolas Kumar1, Justin Mitchell2, Andrew Siemens1
1Harvard Medical School, Department of Anesthesiology, Pain Medicine, and Critical Care Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
Seminars in Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia
|June 22, 2023
Summary
The left-sided double lumen tube is faster to place and less likely to displace than the EZ-Blocker during thoracic surgery. Both devices offer similar lung collapse quality, but the double lumen tube may cause more sore throat.
Area of Science:
- Anesthesiology and Thoracic Surgery
Background:
- The EZ-Blocker is a new bronchial blocker for lung isolation during thoracic surgery.
- It is compared against left-sided double lumen tubes (DLTs) as a potential alternative.
Approach:
- A systematic review and meta-analysis of six randomized controlled trials (495 patients) was conducted.
- Key outcomes included device placement time, intraoperative displacement, and lung collapse quality.
- Safety profiles, including airway trauma and post-extubation discomfort, were also assessed.
Key Points:
- Left-sided DLTs were placed significantly faster (weighted mean difference: -61.24 seconds; P = .004).
- Left-sided DLTs showed a lower incidence of intraoperative displacement (odds ratio: 0.56; P = .02).
- Both devices provided similar surgeon-rated lung isolation quality.
Conclusions:
- Left-sided DLTs offer advantages in placement speed and stability over the EZ-Blocker.
- While associated with more post-extubation sore throat, DLTs demonstrate comparable carinal trauma and hoarseness rates.
- The findings support the continued use of left-sided DLTs for thoracic surgery requiring one-lung ventilation.
