Effect of video-assisted thoracoscopic operation on postoperative cardiopulmonary complications in elderly patients with non-small cell lung cancer

Abstract

Objective To compare the incidence of cardiopulmonary complications between treatment of video assisted thoracoscopic operation and traditional thoracotomy operation in elderly patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Methods 122 cases of elderly patients with non-small cell lung cancer were treated in our hospital from Mar 2010 to Jun 2014, and randomly divided into observation group (therapeutic lobectomy by video-assisted thoracoscopic operation) and control group (therapeutic lobectomy by traditional thoracotomy operation) (n=61, each). The postoperative cardiopulmonary complications and relevant indexes of cardiopulmonary function were analyzed and compared between the two groups. Results Before operation, there was no significant difference in the relevant indexes of cardiopulmonary function between the two groups (P>0.05). After operation, the forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) and maximal ventilatory volume (MMV) were higher and the heart rate was lower in observation group than in control group (t=3.682, 2.243, 5.677, all P<0.05). The incidence of cardiopulmonary complication was lower in observation group than in control group (13.1% vs. 27.9%, χ2=4.075, P=0.044). Conclusions Video-assisted thoracoscopic operation is better for the recovery of cardiopulmonary function, and can reduce cardiopulmonary complication in elderly patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Key words: Thoracoscopes; Cacinoma, non-small-cell lung; Postoperative complications