Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
4117406 | Journal of Plastic, Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgery | 2013 | 4 Pages |
SummaryPost-pneumonectomy bronchopleural fistula (BPF) remains a rare but often life-threatening complication and therapeutic challenge. Traditional surgical procedures include chronic open drainage, attempts at direct stump closure, thoracoplasty with or without chest wall muscle transposition and trans-sternal bronchial closure. We describe a case with successful closure of a chronic BPF after pneumonectomy by intrathoracic transposition of a pedicled latissimus dorsi muscle flap circumferentially fixed on the surrounding pleural tissue under continuous video-assisted thoracoscopic overview. The postoperative course was without complications; no tumour, empyema or fistula re-occurred. In this article we want to present the potential advantages of video-assisted thoracoscopic support and interdisciplinary teamwork to improve the outcome of patients with BPFs after pneumonectomy.