Postpneumonectomy bronchial stump recurrence and bronchopleural fistula.

Objective: To reduce the incidence of postpneumonectomy local recurrence, and to prevent the onset of bronchopleural fistula. Background: A long bronchial stump with a short tumor-free bronchial margin has been found to be associated with a higher incidence of local recurrence, and with the development of bronchopleural fistula in some cases. Methods: 134 patients underwent pneumonectomy for non-small-cell lung cancer in 2 institutions. Bronchial stump length was measured intra- and postoperatively. Results: 30-day postoperative mortality was 2.9%. There were 3 postoperative bronchopleural fistulas after right pneumonectomy (3/61) and one after left pneumonectomy (1/73; p = 0.2; fistula was more frequent in the long-stump group), which were successfully treated with carina sutures in 75% of cases. The overall incidence of local recurrence was strongly related to the presence of tumoral microinvasion in the resection margin (100%). Conclusion: To prevent postpneumonectomy bronchial stump complications, it might be useful to use carina closure instead of bronchial closure. Carina closure can reduce local recurrence, significantly reduce the fistulization rate, and eliminate the stump diverticulum. Reduction of the length of the bronchial stump can be achieved using a TA Roticulator linear stapler.