Clinical Application of CT-guided Preoperative Pulmonary Nodule Localization Technique

Background and objective It’s difficult to localize the accurate position for some pulmonary nodules in video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) wedge resection. The aim of this study is to retrospectively analyze the clinical significance of CT-guided preoperative pulmonary nodule localization technique. Methods Between Jan 2010 and Apr 2011, 20 patients of the First Affiliated Hospital of Medical School of Zhejiang University underwent preoperative pulmonary nodule localization technique before performing VATS wedge resection of the pulmonary nodule. Diameter of the lesion ranges from 0.5 cm to 2 cm (average 9.8 cm±5.3 cm). It was evaluated with the success rate in localization technique, rate of localization related complications, and rate of transferring thoracotomy. Results Eighteen patients underwent successful CT-guided Hookwire localization, with the average time of 14.5 minutes. There was no serious complications. Conclusion CT-guided preoperative pulmonary nodule localization is a promising technique for small solitary pulmonary nodules. It could play an important role in accurate localization of small pulmonary nodules, and it is a safe technique with less postoperative complications