Abstract

SUAREZ SAVIO, Oscar et al. Lung biopsy and video-assisted thoracoscopy in the diagnosis of interstitial lung disease: our experience. Rev Cubana Cir [online]. 2005, vol.44, n.1, pp. 0-0. ISSN 1561-2945.

The decision to perform biopsy by video-assisted thoracoscopy to evaluate a patient with interstitial lung disease is based on the possibility to have a specific diagnosis with this method and, this way, to make a change in the treatment of these patients. From January 1995 to October 2003, biopsies were performed among 128 patients presenting manifestations of interstitial lung disease.Of them, 95 were males and 33 females. Mean age was 48.2 years old. A specific diagnosis was attained in 183 patients (66 %), whereas it was unspecific in 34 % of the cases. The commonest specific diagnoses were lung carcinoma and sarcoidosis, unparticular conditions such as interstitial pneumonitis, interstitial lung fibrosis, etc. In the symptomatic cases, medical treatment with steroids was indicated and a favorable evolution was observed. . Lung biopsy by video-assisted thoracoscopy proved to be a very accurate method with a high specificity for the diagnosis of interstitial lung diseases. The hospital stay of less than 4 days showed that this procedure is more advantageous than open lung biopsy for diagnosing this type of diseases

Keywords : Lung biopsy by video-assisted thoracoscopy; interstitial lung disease.

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