Analysis of Factors Associated with Cough Persistence After Thoracoscopic Lung Cancer Resection in Elderly Lung Cancer Patients and Discussion of Prevention Strategies.

Objective: The aim was to investigate the factors associated with cough persistence after thoracoscopic lung cancer resection in elderly lung cancer patients and preventive strategies.

Methods: In this study, 103 elderly patients with lung cancer who attended the department of thoracic surgery of our hospital from March 2019 to January 2023 were selected for retrospective analysis, all of whom underwent thoracoscopic lung cancer resection and were divided into the cough group (n = 37) and the no-cough group (n = 66) based on the presence or absence of persistent cough in the postoperative period. The clinical data of the patients were analyzed using univariate analysis and multifactorial logistic regression analysis.

Results: The findings of the study show that there was no statistically significant difference when comparing the data of the two groups in terms of gender, age, history of diabetes mellitus, history of hypertension, pathologic type, TNM stage, intraoperative blood loss, and postoperative pleural fluid (P > .05). However, multifactorial analysis showed that preoperative history of smoking, the side of the operation being the right side, the extent of the operation being the lobes of the lungs, the time of tracheal intubation ≥172 min, the peritracheal lymph node clearance, and the occurrence of postoperative acid reflux were independent risk factors for the occurrence of persistent cough in patients after thoracoscopic lung cancer resection, while preoperative respiratory training was a protective factor (P < .05).

Conclusion: There are many factors affecting persistent cough after thoracoscopic lung cancer resection. These factors need to be paid close attention to in the clinic and preventive measures should be taken to minimize the occurrence of persistent cough and promote postoperative recovery.