Periprocedural Complications in Adults with Mediastinal Masses

Area of Science:

• Thoracic Surgery
• Anesthesiology
• Cardiovascular Surgery

Background:

• Mediastinal masses pose risks for respiratory and cardiovascular complications during anesthesia.
• Previous data on these complications in adults are limited to rare case reports.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the incidence and nature of perioperative complications in patients undergoing procedures for mediastinal masses.
• To assess the safety of surgical resection or biopsy for mediastinal masses in a clinical setting.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of 122 patients undergoing procedures for mediastinal masses over a 10-year period.
• Analysis of perioperative outcomes, including intraprocedural and postprocedural complications.
• Evaluation of factors such as mass size, airway obstruction, and compression of cardiovascular structures.

Main Results:

• The majority of procedures (78.8%) were performed under general anesthesia.
• 5.2% of patients experienced intraprocedural complications (e.g., hypoxia), and 7.0% had postprocedural complications (e.g., respiratory failure, circulatory shock).
• No airway or circulatory collapse occurred during anesthesia induction or bronchoscopy; no deaths were reported.

Conclusions:

• Procedures for mediastinal masses can be performed with a low complication rate, even in the presence of airway obstruction or structural compression.
• Optimal patient management requires timely diagnosis and a multidisciplinary approach to airway management.
• Prospective studies are warranted to further define optimal patient management strategies.