The analysis of 89 patients that performed tube thoracostomy by general surgeons

Abstract

Objective: Death due to thoracic trauma accounts for 20% of all trauma deaths. The aim of this study was to discuss our approach applied by general surgeons for thoracic traumas in our center.
Material and Methods: A total of 89 patients (82 males, 7 females; mean age: 26.8 years; range: 7 to 77 years) with thoracic trauma who were admitted to the emergency department and underwent thoracostomy by general surgeons between January 2008 and December 2013 were retrospectively analyzed.
Results: Penetrating trauma was found in 61 patients (68%), which was the most common cause of thoracic trauma. Pneumothorax was the most common clinical sign in 57 patients (64%). Abdominal pathologies were the most common concomitant extra-thoracic pathologies in 17 patients (19%). Fifteen patients (17%) underwent laparotomy due to an intra-abdominal organ injuries. Splenic trauma and diaphragmatic injury were detected in five patients. Complications were seen in two patients (2.2%): one had an air leak and one had persistent pneumothorax. Three patients with multi-trauma died in the early period due to additional pathologies. No mortality was seen in any patient due to thoracic trauma.
Conclusion: Approaches to thoracic trauma should be well-known by all general surgeons and necessary emergency interventions should be performed as a matter of urgency. It is also essential to correctly select patients who are in need of a timely and appropriate referral to a tertiary center to reduce the rate of mortality and morbidity.

This study was presented at the “19th Turkish National Congress of Surgery, 16-20 April 2014, Antalya, Turkey.
Cite this paper as: Tatar C, Kocakuşak A, Özer B, Kızılkaya MC, Karşıdağ T, Arı A, Büyükaşık K. Analysis of 89 patients who underwent tube thoracostomy performed by general surgeons. Turk J Surg 2018; 34: 49-52.

Ethics committee approval was received for this study from the ethics committee of Haseki Training and Research Hospital.

Written informed consent was obtained from patient who participated in this study.

Externally peer-reviewed.

Concept - C.T.; Design - C.T.; Supervision - C.T., T.K., A.K.; Resource - C.T.; Materials - C.T., B.O., M.C.K., A.A., K.B.; Data Collection and/or Processing - C.T., B.O., M.C.K., A.A., K.B.; Analysis and/or Interpretation - C.T., A.K., T.K.; Literature Search - C.T., B.O., M.C.K., A.A., K.B.; Writing Manuscript - C.T.; Critical Reviews - A.K., T.K.

No conflict of interest was declared by the authors.

The authors declared that this study has received no financial support.