Surgical management of bronchiectasis: a 5-year review of a single center’s experience

Abstract

Bronchiectasis continues to be a major cause of morbidity and mortality in developing countries. The purpose of this study is to present our experience in surgical treatment of patients with bronchiectasis during a 5-year period and their early- and late-term results. Records of 48 patients who underwent surgical resection for bronchiectasis from April 2009 through March 2014 at Cardiothoracic Surgery Department of Gauhati Medical College Hospital were reviewed. Variables analyzed were age, sex, symptoms, etiology, extent, indication and type of operation, mortality, morbidity, and the result of surgical therapy. There were 42 (87.5 %) male and 6 (12.5 %) female patients with an average age of 33.7 years (range, 19–47 years). The indications for surgery were failure of conservative treatment in 21 patients (43.75 %), recurrent hemoptysis in 20 (41.66 %), destroyed lung in 5 (10.42 %), and endobronchial obstruction in 2 (4.17 %). Thirty-four patients (70.83 %) had complete resection with lobectomy, pneumonectomy, or bilateral lobectomy, and 14 (29.17 %) had incomplete resection with segmentectomy or lobectomy with segmentectomy. There were no perioperative deaths; complications occurred in 10 patients with a morbidity rate of 20.83 %. Follow-up data were obtained for 44 (91.66 %) of the patients for a mean of 9 months (range, 4 months to 3.5 years). The symptoms disappeared in 21 patients (47.43 %) and improved in 17 (38.64 %). Improvement of symptoms was observed more significantly in the patients undergoing complete resection. Surgical resection for bronchiectasis obtains satisfactory long-term results with acceptable morbidity and mortality rates. When possible, complete resection should be performed.