Bone Plug in the Bronchoscopic Management of Postoperative Bronchopleural Fistulas

Bronchopleural fistula (BPF) is a rare and often difficult postoperative complication to manage. This case series describes a bronchoscopic technique using a bone plug for closure of BPFs.

Six patients at Henry Ford Hospital from 2014 to 2021, who had a postoperative BPF after lung resection with curative intent for non-small cell lung cancer, underwent bronchoscopic placement of a customized bone plug.

All 6 patients experienced initial resolution of the BPF after bone plug placement. Four of the 6 (66.7%) patients were inpatients, with severe pleural space infections requiring chest tube drainage; all patients clinically improved with resolution of persistent air leaks resulting in chest tube removal. Two of the 6 (33.3%) patients had BPF recurrence within 2 months, and 2 of the /6 (33.3%) patients also eventually required additional surgical repair.

Endobronchial placement of a customized bone plug is an option for the management of postoperative BPF.