Comparing surgical outcomes of complete thoracoscopic lobectomy for congenital cystic lung disease between neonatal and infantile patients

Thoracoscopic lobectomy has recently become a widely used surgical treatment for congenital cystic lung disease, but significant issues can arise in some cases, such as a limited working space in neonates, a limited view in cases involving large cystic lesions. We reviewed the treatment outcomes of neonates that underwent complete thoracoscopic lobectomy or segmentectomy and evaluated the operative difficulties. From January 2008 to October 2015, 38 patients under the age of 1 year underwent complete thoracoscopic lobectomy or segmentectomy for cystic lung disease at our institution. We compared the intra- and postoperative data of the neonate group (N group) with those of the infant group (I group). Fourteen and 24 patients underwent thoracoscopic lobectomy or segmentectomy in the N group and I group, respectively. The operative time and amount of intraoperative blood loss did not differ significantly between the two groups (p=0.694 and p=0.878, respectively), but the duration of the postoperative hospitalization period was significantly longer (p<0.01) in the N group. The frequencies of postoperative complications did not differ significantly between the two groups. The operative time of thoracoscopic lobectomy was significantly longer in cases involving incomplete lobar fissures than in those involving normal lobar fissures. Surgical outcomes of complete thoracoscopic lobectomy for neonatal cases are almost equivalent compared with infantile cases, and thoracoscopic lobectomy takes longer in cases involving incomplete lobar fissures.