Surgical treatment

Abstract

When treating pulmonary aspergillosis, surgery may be indicated not only for patients with a simple aspergilloma but also for patients in whom continuing anti-fungal chemotherapy is difficult successful medical treatment cannot be expected and for patients in whom hemoptysis control is poor. An appropriate surgical procedure should be selected based on the general and clinical condition of each patient Lung resection is a curative surgical treatment, whereas cavernostomy or fenestration is a conservative one. Surgeons may encounter severe pleural adhesions in many patients, caused by chronic inflammation and a history of tuberculosis or previous thoracic surgery. In this review, we describe the surgical treatment of pulmonary aspergillosis, and present our tips on surgical techniques.