Effectiveness of cardiopulmonary bypass for radical resection of giant middle mediastinal paraganglioma.

A non-functional middle mediastinal paraganglioma is a rare entity. We describe a case of a 67-year-old woman with a diagnosis of a big mediastinal paraganglioma by endobronchial ultrasound transbronchial needle aspiration after chest CT and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron-emission tomography. The nine centimeter in length tumor was located between the superior vena cava and the posterior portion of the ascending aorta, compressing the left atrium and the trachea and main left bronchus, posteriorly, surrounding the right pulmonary artery.

Training simulator efficacy in developing thoracic and general surgical skills in a residency programme: a pilot study.

Objectives: Virtual training simulators have been introduced in several surgical disciplines to improve residents' abilities. Through the use of the LapSim® virtual training simulator (Surgical Science, Göteborg, Sweden), this study aims to plan an effective learning path in minimally invasive thoracic and general surgery.

Methods: All thoracic and general surgery trainees in their 1st and 2nd year of residency at the University of Insubria were enrolled and randomized into 2 groups: residents undergoing an intensive twice-a-week virtual training programme (group A: n = 8) and those undergoing a once-weekly non-intensive virtual training programme (group B: n = 9).

Dual-Layer Spectral CT as Innovative Imaging Guidance in Lung Biopsies: Could Color-Coded Z-Effective Images Allow More Diagnostic Samplings and Biomarkers Information?

The aim of the study was to try to obtain more information on diagnostic samplings and biomarkers using dual-layer spectral CT in lung biopsies. Lung biopsies were performed by merging images obtained with CBCT with those from spectral CT to use them as functional guidance, experimenting with double sampling to determine the difference between the area with a higher Z-effective number and that with a lower Z-effective number. Ten patients with large lung lesions on spectral CT were selected and underwent percutaneous transthoracic lung mass biopsy.

Assessment of the 90-day mortality risk score after video-assisted thoracoscopic lobectomy in the Italian VATS Group cohort.

A five-class (A-E) aggregate risk score predicting 90-day mortality after video-assisted thoracoscopic lobectomy for lung cancer, including as independent factors male sex (3 points), carbon monoxide lung diffusion capacity ≤60% (1 point), and operative time ≥150 minutes (1 point), has been recently published. This study aims to assess the effectiveness and reliability of this risk model in a large, independent cohort of patients to confirm its generalizability. From the Italian VATS Group database, we selected 2209 patients [60% males; median age 69 years (interquartile range: 63-74)] who underwent video-assisted thoracoscopic lobectomy for non-small cell lung cancer.

Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery simulation and training: a comprehensive literature review.

Background: Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) has become the standard for lung cancer diagnosis and treatment. However, this surgical technique requires specific and dedicated training. In the past 20 years, several simulator systems have been developed to promote VATS training.