Preoperative Cardiac Evaluation of Lung Resection Candidates

Cardiac complications are second only to pulmonary complications as a cause of perioperative morbidity and mortality after lung resection surgery. Preoperative evaluation should focus on clinical risk factors in the history, physical examination, functional status, and electrocardiogram to identify patients at high risk who require further investigation or intervention. Because these patients need to have surgery performed within a month or two of their diagnosis to minimize the chance of the disease spreading, it is important to avoid unnecessary or prolonged delays to evaluate or treat other medical comorbidities.