Indications and results of surgical resection of bubbles arising from pulmonary emphysema

Abstract

Surgical resection of bubbles or bullectomy is the gold standard in the treatment of bubbles arising from pulmonary emphysema. It is usually indicated for patients with complicated bubbles or when they are the underlying cause of disabling dyspnea. This study aims to determine the indications for bullectomy and to evaluate surgical outcomes in our Department. We conducted a retrospective, descriptive study of 24 patients (23 men and 1 woman) whose average age was 49 years and who had undergone bullectomy between 2004 and 2013. Collected data were: factors favoring the occurrence of bullous emphysema, the circumstances in which bubble was detected, data from the radiological examinations, data from pulmonary and cardiovascular function testing, data from bullectomy, data from postoperative clinical and functional examination. Morbidity rate was 37.5 %. The main complication was persistent air leak (7 cases). One patient died two days after surgery due to acute respiratory failure. The average follow-up period was 26 months during which we observed improvement of dyspnea in all patients and no complications. Bullectomy is an effective, reliable and safe surgical technique that may improve patients’ quality of life for a few years.