ObjectiveTo investigate the safety and efficacy of 3D single-portal inflatable mediastinoscopic and laparoscopic esophagectomy for esophageal cancer.MethodsClinical data of 28 patients, including 25 males and 3 females, aged 51-76 years, with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma undergoing single-portal inflatable mediastinoscopic and laparoscopic esophagectomy from June 2018 to June 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were divided into two groups according to different surgical methods including a 3D mediastinoscopic group (3D group, 10 patients) and a 2D mediastinoscopic group (2D group, 18 patients). The perioperative outcome of the two groups were compared.ResultsCompared with the 2D group, the 3D group had shorter operation time (P=0.017), more lymph nodes resected (P=0.005) and less estimated blood loss (P=0.015). There was no significant difference between the two groups in the main surgeon's vertigo and visual ghosting (P>0.05). The other aspects including the indwelling time, postoperative hospital stay, pulmonary infection, arrhythmia, anastomotic fistula, recurrent laryngeal nerve injury were not statistically significant between the two groups (P>0.05).ConclusionThe 3D inflatable mediastinoscopic and laparoscopic esophagectomy for esophageal cancer, which optimizes the surgical procedures of 2D, is safe and feasible, and is worthy of clinical promotion in the future.
Esophageal carcinoma is one of the most common malignant tumor, a serious threat to human health. In the early and middle esophageal carcinoma patients, surgery is the only expected treatment to cure esophageal carcinoma. Traditional surgery of esophageal cancer needs thoracotomy and laparotomy, which has great trauma and high incidence of complications. So surgeons are looking for a minimally invasive surgical methods alternative to traditional esophagectomy. Video-mediastinoscopy is used to free middle and upper esophagus, as a minimally invasive surgical method, it is used in radical resection of esophageal cancer gradually. This article reviews the recent progress and the related research results in the application of mediastinoscopy in the radical resection of esophageal cancer. It is found that mediastinoscopy assisted the radical resection of esophageal cancer is a safe and feasible operation. It provides a feasible treatment option for early and middle stage esophageal cancer patients with pulmonary insufficiency who can not be resected by thoracoscopy.
Objective To compare the different surgical treatment methods of thymoma combined with myasthenia gravis (MG), and to discuss the clinical effectiveness of thoracoscopic combined mediastinoscopic extended thymectomy. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 58 patients of thymoma combined with myasthenia gravis in Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital between 2011 and 2016 year. According to the operation method, the patients were divided into three groups including a group A for thoracoscopic thymectomy (n=32), a group B for thoracoscopic combined mediastinoscopic thymectomy (n=15), and a group C for transsternal thymectomy (n=11). The clinical effects were observed and compared. Results In the group A and the group B, the bleeding volume, postoperative hospital stay and other complications were significantly lower than those in the group C with statistical differences (P<0.05). The incidence of myasthenic crisis in the group B (6.7%) was less than that in the group C (36.4 %), but the difference was not statistically different (P=0.058). The operation time of the three groups was 122.0 ± 39.4 min, 130.3 ± 42.5 min, and 142.3 ± 40.8 min respectively with no statistical difference between the two groups (P>0.05). The rate of dissection grade in the group B (grade 1, 12 patients, 80%) was significantly greater than that in the group A (grade 1, 14 patients, 43.8%,P<0.05). The effective rate of the group A, the group B, the group C was 84.4%, 93.3% and 90.9%, respectively with no statistical difference between groups (P>0.05). Conclusion The thoracoscopy combined mediastinoscopic thymectomy not only has the advantages of less trauma, quicker recovery and fewer complications, but also can more thoroughly clean the thymus and adipose tissue, which can achieve the same therapeutic effect as the transsternal thymectomy.
ObjectiveTo explore the application effects of hand-sewn layered anastomosis (HS) and circular stapled anastomosis (CS) in inflatable mediastinal mirror synchronous laparoscopic radical esophagectomy for esophageal cancer. MethodsPatients who underwent inflatable mediastinal mirror synchronous laparoscopic radical esophagectomy for esophageal cancer in Huaihe Hospital of Henan University from 2018 to 2019 were retrospectively included. Patients were divided into a HS group and a CS group according to the anastomosis methods, and propensity score matching was used to match patients at a ratio of 1:1. The baseline clinical characteristics, perioperative indicators, CD4+/CD8+ immune index comparison, pain, various lung function indicators, incidence of short-term and long-term postoperative complications, and quality of life were compared between the two groups. ResultsA total of 153 patients were included, including 108 males and 45 females, with an average age of (61.81±5.18) years. After propensity score matching, 70 patients were included in each group. Compared with the CS group, the operation time was longer in the HS group [(107.10±8.25) min vs. (97.65±6.85) min, P<0.001]; the CD4+/CD8+ level was lower in the HS group 1-3 days after surgery; the pain score was higher, and various lung function indicators (forced expiratory volume in the first second, forced vital capacity, and one-second rate) were lower in the HS group 1-7 days after surgery; within 6 months after surgery, the incidence of anastomosis-related complications (anastomotic stenosis, anastomotic fistula, and gastroesophageal reflux) was lower in the HS group; and the quality of life score was higher in the HS group from 14 days to 6 months after surgery (P<0.05). ConclusionHS can reduce the incidence of postoperative anastomotic fistula, anastomotic stenosis, and gastroesophageal reflux, and improve the short-term quality of life of patients, but it has a longer operation time, more intense short-term postoperative pain, and may affect the early recovery of lung function. HS and CS are complementary, and the appropriate surgical method should be chosen according to the individual situation of the patient to achieve the maximum clinical benefit.
Abstract： Objective To investigate the indications， surgical techniques and postoperative complication management of transhiatal esophagectomy without thoracotomy for patients with esophageal cancer. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the clinical records of 105 patients with esophageal cancer who underwent transhiatal esophagectomy without thoracotomy in the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University between July 2002 and July 2010， including 28 patients who received video-assisted mediastinoscopy. There were 59 male patients and 46 female patients with their average age of 63 （48-81） years. There were 51 patients with upper thoracic esophageal cancer， 18 patients with middle thoracic esophageal cancer and 36 patients with lower thoracic esophageal cancer. Surgical outcomes and safety were evaluated. Results Mean operation time was 153 （140-210） minutes， mean intraoperative blood loss was 150 （100 to 250） ml， and mean hospital stay was 15 （10-35） days. There was no in-hospital death or residual tumor cells in esophagus stumps. Twenty-seven patients had postoperative complications， including 3 patients with anastomotic leakage at neck， 4 patients with recurrent laryngeal nerve injury， 5 patients with pleural effusion， 2 patients with pneumothorax， 3 patients with pneumonia， 3 patients with arrhythmia， 1 patient with chylothorax， 2 patients with incision infection， 2 patients with delayed gastric emptying， and 2 patients with anastomotic stenosis， who were all cured after treatment. Ninety-seven patients were followed up from 16 months to 5 years， and 8 patients were lost during follow-up. During follow-up， there were 94 patients who had lived for 1 year， 67 patients who had lived for 3 years， and 34 patients who had lived for 5 years postoperatively， and some patients needed further follow-up. Conclusion Transhiatal esophagectomy without thoracotomy is a minimally traumatic procedure and can provide fast postoperative recovery. It is especially suitable for patients with stageⅡor earlier esophageal cancer who can’t tolerate or aren’t suitable for transthoracic esophagectomy.
ObjectiveTo investigate the short-term follow-up results of inflatable mediastinoscopy combined with laparoscopy in the treatment of esophageal cancer.MethodsClinical data of 102 patients with esophageal cancer who underwent minimally invasive esophagectomy were enrolled in our hospital from January 2017 to January 2019. Patients were divided into two groups according to different surgical methods, including a single-port inflatable mediastinoscopy combined with laparoscopy group (group A, n=59, 53 males and 6 females, aged 63.3±7.6 years, ranging from 45 to 75 years) and a video-assisted thoracoscopy combined with laparoscopy group (group B, n=43, 35 males and 8 females, aged 66.7±6.7 years, ranging from 50-82 years). The short-term follow-up results of the two groups were compared.ResultsCompared with the group A, the rate of postoperative pulmonary complication of the group B was significantly lower (18.64% vs. 4.65%, P<0.05). There was no significant difference between the two groups in other postoperative complications (P>0.05). The 6-month, 1-year, and 2-year survival rates were 96.61%, 89.83%, and 73.33%, respectively in the group A, and were 95.35%, 93.02%, and 79.17%, respectively in the group B. There was no significant difference in short-term survival rate after operation (P>0.05).ConclusionIn the treatment of esophageal cancer, the incidence of pulmonary complications of inflatable mediastinoscopy combined with laparoscopy is lower than that of traditional video-assisted thoracoscopy combined with laparoscopy, and there is no significant difference in other postoperative complications or short-term survival rate between the two methods. Inflatable mediastinoscopy combined with laparoscopy for radical esophageal cancer is a relatively safe surgical method with good short-term curative effects, and long-term curative effects need to be further tested.
Objective To evaluate the clinical role of video-assisted mediastinoscopy and its safety and effectiveness in the diagnosis of thoracic disease. Methods We reviewed the clinical data of consecutive 40 patients (25 males and 15 females with an average age of 54.6 years) who received video-assisted mediastinoscopic surgery in our department of thoracic surgery from December 2011 to November 2016, including mediastinal lymph node biopsy in 27 patients, mediastinal primary lesions biopsy in 8, bronchial cystectomy in 3 and esophageal dissection in 2. Results The histological results were positive in 20 patients (73.1%) in mediastinal lymph node biopsy, including granulomatous mediastinitis in 14 and metastasis in 6 (non-small cell lung cancer in 4, Ewing sacoma in 1 and small cell lung cancer in 1) and reactive proliferation in 7 (26.9%). In mediastinal primary lesions biopsy, the accuracy rate of diagnosis was 100.0%. The pathologic results were malignant in all patients, including small cell lung cancer in 5, adenoid cystic carcinoma in 1, squamous carcinoma in 1 and adenocarcinoma in 1. In patients who received the bronchial cystectomy, no recurrence was found during at least 2 years follow-up. There was one patient with severe complication (innominate artery injury). Two patients suffered transient laryngeal recurrent nerve palsy with hoarseness and two patients incision secretion. Conclusion Video-assisted mediastinoscopic surgery is effective and safe and dissection should be careful in granulomatous mediastinitis to avoid the great vessel injures.
Objective To compare the differences in postoperative pulmonary function and quality of life between synchronous and combined mediastinoscopy with laparoscopic radical resection of esophageal cancer, providing evidence for selecting the optimal surgical approach. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on patients who underwent minimally invasive mediastinoscopic esophagectomy at Huaihe Hospital of Henan University from January 2023 to January 2025. Patients were divided into two groups based on surgical approach: the synchronized laparoscopic inflatable mediastinoscopy (SPIMSLE) group and the inflatable video-assisted mediastinoscopic transhiatal esophagectomy (IVMTE) group. Propensity score matching (1 : 1) was applied to balance baseline characteristics. Perioperative indicators, pulmonary function (FEV1, FVC, FEV1/FVC ratio), postoperative complications, pain levels (NRS score), and quality of life were statistically analyzed. Results A total of 173 patients were enrolled, including 110 males, 63 females with a mean age of (62.5±6.2) years. After matching, each group comprised 80 patients. No significant differences were observed in gender, age, tumor location, or clinical stage (all P>0.05). The SPIMSLE group demonstrated superior outcomes: shorter operative time [(100.32±15.28) vs. (134.53±16.43) min, P<0.001], less intraoperative blood loss [(40.13±12.73) mL vs. (69.45±12.34) mL, P<0.001), and shorter postoperative hospitalization [(10.50±2.00) d vs. (12.50±2.50) d, P<0.001]. At 1-6 months postoperatively, the SPIMSLE group showed faster recovery in pulmonary function (FEV1, FVC, FEV1/FVC ratio, P<0.05), lower complication rates (16.25% vs. 40%, P<0.001), reduced pain (NRS score, P<0.05), and improved quality of life (P<0.05). No significant difference was noted in lymph node dissection (P>0.05). All patients were followed up until June 2025, with no recurrence, metastasis, or mortality among the 160 cases. Conclusion Compared to IVMTE, SPIMSLE offers shorter operative time, reduced blood loss, faster pulmonary recovery, fewer complications, milder pain, and better quality of life, demonstrating significant clinical advantages.