Is incentive spirometry beneficial for patients with lung cancer receiving video-assisted thoracic surgery?

BACKGROUND: The effectiveness of Incentive spirometry (IS) in patients undergoing video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) remains lacking. We conducted a population-based study to investigate the effectiveness of IS on patients with lung cancers following VATS. METHODS: We identified patients newly diagnosed with lung cancer who underwent surgical resection by VATS or thoracotomy from the years 2000 to 2008 in the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database. Exposure variable was the use of IS during admission for surgical resection by VATS or thoracotomy. Primary outcomes included hospitalization cost, incidence of pneumonia, and length of hospital stay. Secondary outcomes included the frequency of emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalizations at 3-month, 6-month, and 12-month follow-ups after thoracic surgery. RESULTS: We analyzed 7549 patients with lung cancer undergoing surgical resection by VATS and thoracotomy. The proportion of patients who were subjected to IS was significantly higher in those who underwent thoracotomy than in those who underwent VATS (68.4% vs. 53.1%, P < 0.0001). After we controlled for potential covariates, the IS group significantly reduced hospitalization costs (− 524.5 USD, 95% confidence interval [CI] = − 982.6 USD – -66.4 USD) and the risk of pneumonia (odds ratio = 0.55, 95% CI = 0.32–0.95) compared to the non-IS group following VATS. No difference in ED visit frequency and hospitalization frequency at 3-month, 6-month, and 1-year follow-up was noted between the IS and the non-IS groups following VATS. CONCLUSIONS: The use of IS in patients with lung cancers undergoing VATS may reduce hospitalization cost and the risk of pneumonia.