Abstract
Background: An increasing number of patients have been receiving bronchial occlusion therapies against spontaneous pneumothoraces. However, predicting which patients will benefit from the procedures remains difficult.
Methods: This post-hoc analysis used data from a randomized controlled trial of the Endobronchial Watanabe Spigot (EWS) ®and fibrin glue in patients with intractable pneumothoraces. All of the patients received one or more bronchial occlusion therapies (BOTs). The success of the BOT was defined as the termination of air-leakage from the chest tubes and expansion of the affected lungs within a week of the first or second BOT.
Results: The study included 22 patients (male/female: 18/4) with a median age of 68 at the initial BOT. The BOT produced the desired outcome in 13 patients. Univariate analysis suggested that a previous history of pneumothoraces and the absence of a history of heavy cigarette smoking, defined as 40 packs per year or more, are predictors of a favorable therapeutic outcome (p=0.046, 0.067). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that the absence of a history of heavy cigarette smoking significantly correlated with a favorable outcome (p=0.043).
Conclusion: The results suggested that spontaneous pneumothorax patients without a history of heavy cigarette smoking may benefit from bronchial occlusion therapies using the EWS, or fibrin glue.
- Copyright ©ERS 2015
