Surgery on the lungs requires preparation from the patient and compliance with recovery measures after its completion. They resort to removing the lung in severe cases of cancer. Oncology develops imperceptibly and can manifest itself already in a malignant state. Often people do not go to the doctor for minor ailments, indicating the progression of the disease.
Types of Surgery
An operation on the lungs is carried out only after a complete diagnosis of the patient’s body. Doctors are required to verify the safety of the procedure for a person who has a tumor. Surgical treatment should take place immediately, until oncology has spread further through the body.
Lung surgery is of the following types:
- Lobectomy - extraction of the tumor part of an organ.
- Pulmonectomy involves complete excision of one of the lungs.
- Sphenoid resection is a point operation of the chest tissue.
For patients, lung surgery seems like a sentence. After all, a person cannot imagine what will be empty in his chest. However, surgeons are trying to reassure patients, there is nothing terrible in this. Concerns about breathing difficulties are in vain.
Preliminary preparation for the procedure
An operation to remove the lung requires preparation, the essence of which is to diagnose the condition of the remaining healthy part of the organ. After all, you need to be sure that after the procedure a person can breathe, as before. A wrong decision can lead to disability or death. They also assess overall well-being, not every patient can withstand anesthesia.
The doctor will need to collect tests:
- urine
- blood test results;
- chest x-ray ;
- ultrasound of the respiratory organ.
Additional testing may be required if the patient has a disease of the heart, digestive or endocrine system. The prohibition includes blood thinners. It must be at least 7 days before the operation. The patient sits on a therapeutic diet, bad habits will need to be eliminated before visiting the clinic and after a long recovery period.
The essence of surgery in the chest
Surgical removal takes a long time under anesthesia for at least 5 hours. According to the pictures, the surgeon finds a place for incision with a scalpel. Dissected tissue of the chest and pleura of the lung. Adhesions are cut off, the organ is released for extraction.
The surgeon uses clamps to stop bleeding. The drugs used in anesthesia are checked in advance so as not to cause anaphylactic shock. Patients may have an acute allergic reaction to the active substance.
After removing the whole lung, the artery is fixed with a clamp, then nodes are superimposed. Seams are made by absorbable threads that do not require removal. Inflammation is prevented by physiological saline injected into the chest: into the cavity, which is located between the pleura and the lung. The procedure ends with a forced increase in pressure in the respiratory system.
Recovery period
After lung surgery, precautions must be taken. The entire period passes under the supervision of the surgeon who performed the procedure. After a few days, mobility restoring exercises begin.
Respiratory movements are carried out lying, sitting and while walking. The task is simple - to reduce the treatment period through the restoration of the pectoral muscles weakened by anesthesia. Home therapy does not go painlessly, cramped tissues are gradually released.
With severe pain, it is allowed to use painkillers. Appeared edema, purulent complications or lack of inhaled air must be eliminated with your doctor. Discomfort during chest movement lasts up to two months, which is a normal course of the recovery period.
Additional rehabilitation assistance
The patient spends several days in bed after surgery. Removing the lung has unpleasant consequences, but simple remedies help to avoid the development of inflammation:
- The dropper supplies the body with anti-inflammatory substances, vitamins, the required amount of fluid for the normal functioning of internal organs and maintaining metabolic processes at the proper level.
- You will need to install tubes in the area of the cut, fixed by a bandage between the ribs. The surgeon can leave them for the entire first week. You have to put up with inconveniences for the sake of future health.
If lung cancer has already been removed , after surgery about a week of treatment takes place in a hospital. Having checked out, they continue to do physical exercises, take anti-inflammatory drugs, until the seam disappears completely.
Background to the surgeon’s treatment
Tumors in the lungs appear due to the following factors:
- Tuberculosis.
- Cyst.
- Echinococcosis.
- Fungus.
- Injuries.
Infections are on a par with other provocateurs: bad habits (smoking, alcoholism), chronic diseases (thrombosis, diabetes), obesity, long-term drug therapy, a strong allergic reaction. The lungs are checked periodically for the timely determination of pathological conditions.
So, it is recommended to examine the lungs once a year. Particular attention is paid to patients suffering from vascular diseases. If you start the disease, the dying tissue of the tumor will provoke further growth of pathological cells. Inflammation spreads to neighboring organs or goes through the bloodstream into the body.
The cyst in the lungs does not remain in its original form. It gradually grows, squeezing the sternum. There is discomfort and pain. Compressed tissues begin to die, causing the appearance of purulent foci. Similar effects are observed after injury, fracture of the rib.
Could the diagnosis be wrong?
In very rare cases, a diagnostic error occurs with the conclusion "lung tumor." Operation in such situations may not be the only way out. However, doctors still resort to removal of the lung for reasons of preserving human health.
In severe complications, it is recommended to remove the affected tissue. The decision about the operation is made according to clinical symptoms and images. The pathological part is removed to stop the growth of tumor cells. There are cases of miraculous healing, but hoping for such an outcome is unreasonable. Surgeons are used to being realistic, because it is about saving the patient’s life.