Objective: To study the clinical manifestations, diagnostic methods, surgical management and prognosis of patients with neurogenic tumors of the mediastinum.
Method: One hundred and ten patients with neurogenic tumors of the mediastinum were analyzed retrospectively.
Results: After operation, 2 patients died in hospitalization and 8 experienced such complications as Horner's syndrome or laryngeal recurrent nerve paralysis. In 102 patients with benign tumors, 2 patients had recurrence, and 4 patients with neurofibrosarcoma or malignant neurilemmoma died within 3 years postoperatively.
Conclusions: Most neurogenic tumors of the mediastinum are benign and could be diagnosed by chest X-ray or CT. The clinical manifestations, diagnosis methods, surgical management of the dumbbell tumors differ from others. Minimal invasive surgery and video assist thoracoscopy surgery are of special value in treatment of the selected neurogenic tumors of the mediastinum. Benign neurogenic tumors rarely recur after complete resection, and malignant neurogenic tumors have poor prognosis.