Bleeding-related re-exploration following pulmonary resection: a report of a single-center experience

Abstract

Purpose: Postoperative bleeding is a potentially fatal complication after lung surgery and usually requires re-operation. The aim of this study was to analyze the characteristics of bleeding-related re-exploration following pulmonary resection and reduce the incidence of this complication.

Methods: From January 2016 to December 2020, 14,104 patients underwent pulmonary resection for lung cancer or pulmonary nodule at Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, China. We evaluated cases with bleeding-related re-exploration, and analyzed the relationship between postoperative bleeding and clinical characteristics. We further developed a protocol to reduce the proportion of bleeding-related re-exploration in our center.

Results: Bleeding-related re-exploration occurred in 85 (0.60%) out of 14,104 patients. The sources of postoperative bleeding included surgical incision (20, 23.53%), parietal pleura (20, 23.53%), bronchial artery (14, 16.47%), lung parenchyma (13, 15.29%), pulmonary vessel (5, 5.88%) and rare source of bleeding. There were various patterns of postoperative bleeding. Open thoracotomy had a significantly higher bleeding rate than video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) (1.27% vs 0.34%, p < 0.0001). The bleeding rate of pneumonectomy, lobectomy, segmentectomy and wedge resection was significantly different (1.78%, 0.88%, 0.46% vs 0.28%, p < 0.0001). All patients were discharged successfully except for one patient died of respiratory failure. A protocol based on these findings was developed to reduce the proportion of bleeding-related re-exploration in our center.

Conclusion: Our findings revealed that the source of bleeding, surgical approach and procedure affected the pattern of postoperative bleeding. Postoperative bleeding could be managed properly on the timely decision of re-exploration considering its origin, severity, onset and risk factors.

Keywords: Lung surgery; Postoperative bleeding; Re-exploration.