Faculty Bibliography

Surgical approaches to lung cancer resection are rapidly evolving, particularly for early-stage lung cancer. Advances in chest CT technology and increasing use of CT in patient care have led to detection of smaller nodules, many with ground-glass attenuation that do not require lobectomy for resection. Lung-sparing and minimally invasive techniques have been shown to result in improved patient outcomes compared with those of traditional open thoracotomy and are noninferior in terms of cancer recurrence. As more patients undergo these surgeries, it is important for radiologists to be aware of useful information for surgeons before the operation. It is helpful for radiologists to understand the indications for lung-sparing surgery and have a basic understanding of the techniques involved in video-assisted and robotic thoracic operations. Identification of the location and morphology of the tumor, as well as the pulmonary vasculature that feeds and drains the segment of lung containing the tumor is important. Also, the presence of emphysema, pulmonary fibrosis, and incomplete fissures is useful information. In addition, chest imaging is also progressing, with improvements in multiplanar reformations and three-dimensional imaging allowing for more detailed and accurate image-based localization of tumors and visualization of anatomy. Nodule localization for surgery plays an even larger role given the limited ability to palpate nodules during surgery with minimally invasive surgery approaches. Methods can involve imaging and in vivo localization, with transthoracic and bronchoscopic methods used to label a nodule. Finally, radiologists should be aware of postoperative complications and their imaging characteristics, such as suture line granulomas and bronchopleural fistulas. Supplemental material is available for this article. ^©RSNA, 2025.

OBJECTIVES/OBJECTIVE:Fortunately, operating room deaths and unexpected deaths are infrequent occurrences. However, when they occur, the surgeon is called upon to deliver this news to family and loved ones. There is a paucity of literature on this topic and little guidance preparing cardiothoracic surgeons for this important but difficult situation. Furthermore, the surgeon may very well lack previous experience with this challenging situation. Having contemplated this in advance and having a script in mind will likely benefit both the surgeon and family. METHODS:The American Association for Thoracic Surgery Wellness Committee called upon the available published literature, consultation with experts, and upon their collective experience and cumulative wisdom to address this topic. RESULTS:The result of this process is a narrative discussion of delivering news of an unexpected death and a bullet point guide to speaking with the bereaved family. CONCLUSIONS:In this stressful situation, precontemplation of the surgeon's duties and being armed with a bullet point guide may benefit the surgeon, family, and heath care team. The lessons learned may be applicable to other situations requiring the delivery of distressing information.

OBJECTIVES/UNASSIGNED:Our goal is to continuously improve patient outcomes, care quality, and overall experience. METHODS/UNASSIGNED:This is a quality improvement study based on the experience of a single surgeon and represents the world's largest reported consecutive series of robotic lobectomy and segmentectomy performed by a single surgeon. RESULTS/UNASSIGNED: < 0.001), chest tube duration decreased from 72  to 4 h, and patient satisfaction scores improved from 87% to 98%. Various selective process improvements and strategies that we implemented and, in our opinion, improved both patient outcomes and experience are shared to scale this experience to others. CONCLUSIONS/UNASSIGNED:A commitment to getting better via innovation and process improvements of all aspects of the pre-, intra-, and postoperative care and their pathways leads to improved outcomes and patient experience for robotic pulmonary resection. The selective processes and strategies that we believe led to these improving outcomes are shared and are possibly scalable elsewhere.

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons Workforce on Evidence-Based Surgery provides this document on management of pleural drains after pulmonary lobectomy. The goal of this consensus document is to provide guidance regarding pleural drains in 5 specific areas: (1) choice of drain, including size, type, and number; (2) management, including use of suction vs water seal and criteria for removal; (3) imaging recommendations, including the use of daily and postpull chest roentgenograms; (4) use of digital drainage systems; and (5) management of prolonged air leak. To formulate the consensus statements, a task force of 15 general thoracic surgeons was invited to review the existing literature on this topic. Consensus was obtained using a modified Delphi method consisting of 2 rounds of voting until 75% agreement on the statements was reached. A total of 13 consensus statements are provided to encourage standardization and stimulate additional research in this important area.

BACKGROUND:Our objective is to assess the feasibility, safety, and outcomes for patients discharged home with a chest tube connected to a digital drainage system after robotic pulmonary resection. METHODS:A retrospective analysis of a prospectively collected database as a quality improvement initiative. All patients had planned discharge on postoperative day one (POD1) after robotic pulmonary resection. Those with an air leak were discharge home with a chest tube connected to a digital drainage system with daily communication with the surgeon. RESULTS:From January 2019 to February 2023 there were 580 consecutive robotic resections, of which 69 (12%) patients had an air leak on POD1; 38/276 (14%) after lobectomy, 24/226 (11%) after segmentectomy, and 7/78 (9%) after wedge resection. Of these 69 patients, 52 patients (75%) were discharged on POD1, 15 patients (22%) on POD2, and 2 patients (3%) on POD3. Chest tubes were removed a median outpatient chest tube duration was 4 days (IQR 3-5). Of the 69 patients sent home with a digital drainage system, there was one complication requiring readmission for increasing subcutaneous emphysema. Five patients (7%) had system malfunctions that required return to our clinic for problem solving. There were no 30 or 90-day mortalities. CONCLUSIONS:Patients who undergo robotic pulmonary resection and have an air leak can be safely and effectively discharged on the first post-operative day and managed as an outpatient by using daily texts and or videos with pulse oximetry data on a digital drainage system with limited morbidity.

BACKGROUND/UNASSIGNED:The current gold standard of scoliosis correction procedures is still posterior spinal fusion, an extensively studied procedure. anterior vertebral body tethering is a newer surgical technique for the correction of scoliotic curves. Consequently, best practices have yet to be determined. METHODS/UNASSIGNED:A single-institution, retrospective, review of all patients diagnosed with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis who underwent two row anterior vertebral body tethering between June 2020 and April 2022 was performed. RESULTS/UNASSIGNED: = 4). CONCLUSIONS/UNASSIGNED:This early review of a 2-year two row vertebral body tethering postoperative experience provides a report of a safe and effective approach to chest tube management at a single academic center.

The prevalence of burnout among physicians has been increasing over the last decade, but data on burnout in the specialty of cardiothoracic surgery are lacking. We aimed to study this topic through a well-being survey. A 54-question well-being survey was developed by the Wellness Committee of the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) and sent by email from January through March of 2021 to AATS members and participants of the 2021 annual meeting. The 5-item Likert-scale survey questions were dichotomized, and associations were determined by Chi-square tests or independent samples t-tests, as appropriate. The results from 871 respondents (17% women) were analyzed. Many respondents reported at least moderately experiencing: 1) a sense of dread coming to work (50%), 2) physical exhaustion at work (58%), 3) a lack of enthusiasm at work (46%), and 4) emotional exhaustion at work (50%). Most respondents (70%) felt that burnout affected their personal relationships at least "some of the time," and many (43%) experienced a great deal of work-related stress. Importantly, most respondents (62%) reported little to no access to workplace resources for emotional support, but those who reported access reported less burnout. Most respondents (57%) felt that the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected their well-being. On a positive note, 80% felt their career was fulfilling and enjoyed their day-to-day job at least "most of the time." Cardiothoracic surgeons experience high levels of burnout, similar to that of other medical professionals. Interventions aimed at mitigating burnout in this profession are discussed.