thoracic surgery with a single incision

Assisted VATS (VATS video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery) offers great advantages: lower long-term postoperative pain, greater functional recovery, reduced immune damage and complication rate, better cosmesis and early discharge.

Since 2010, we developed thoracoscopic with a single incision to operate lung cancer (UNIPORTAL VATS). Thus it allows more complex bronchial and vascular reconstruction surgeries and prevent complete removal of the lung.

Since 2014, we have gone a step further: lung surgery without intubate the patient under sedation and maintaining spontaneous ventilation. With this less aggressive option complications are decreased, oxygenation conditions and hemodynamics are improved, the patient has greater postoperative comfort, income is avoided in intensive care, returning home in the shortest possible time and costs are significantly lower. These techniques should be performed only by surgeons with extensive experience.

Another innovation is the subxiphoid UNIPORTAL approach for lung surgery more. The advantage is that the chest is not opened and the incidence of postoperative pain is very low. From the subxifiodeo space we can make thymectomies in myasthenic patients, mediastinal tumor resections, surgery of both lungs and pulmonary lobectomy. For this type of surgery the surgeon must have extensive experience in the UNIPORTAL technique.

The next technological advances such as robotic surgery through a single incision, the development of new finer and luffing endostaplers or using wireless cameras facilitate the adoption of the single port thoracic surgery by a large number of surgeons.