Article

Minimally invasive surgery versus open surgery for the treatment of solid abdominal and thoracic neoplasms in children.

Pediatric Surgical Center of Amsterdam, EmmaChildren’sHospital / AcademicMedical Center, Amsterdam,Netherlands.
Cochrane database of systematic reviews (Online) (impact factor: 5.72). 01/2012; 1:CD008403. DOI:10.1002/14651858.CD008403.pub2 pp.CD008403
Source: PubMed

ABSTRACT Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is an accepted surgical technique for the treatment of a variety of benign diseases. Presently, the use of MIS in patients with cancer is progressing. However, the role of MIS in children with solid neoplasms is less clear than it is in adults. Diagnostic MIS to obtain biopsy specimens for pathology has been accepted as a technique in paediatric surgical oncology, but there is limited experience with the use of MIS for the resection of malignancies.
To ascertain the differences in outcome between the minimally invasive and open approach in the treatment of solid intra-thoracic and intra-abdominal neoplasms in children, regarding overall survival, event-free survival, port-site metastases, recurrence rate and surgical morbidity.
We searched the electronic databases of MEDLINE/PubMed (from 1966 to February 2011), EMBASE/Ovid (from 1980 to February 2011) and CENTRAL (The Cochrane Library 2011, Issue 1) with pre-specified terms. In addition, we searched reference lists of relevant articles and reviews, conference proceedings and ongoing trial databases.
Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) or controlled clinical trials (CCTs) comparing MIS and open surgery for the treatment of solid intra-thoracic or intra-abdominal neoplasms in children (aged 0 to 18 years).
Two authors performed the study selection independently.
No studies that met the inclusion criteria of this review were identified.
No RCTs or CCTs evaluating MIS in the treatment of solid intra-thoracic or intra-abdominal neoplasms in children could be identified, therefore no definitive conclusions could be made about the effects of MIS in these patients. Based on the currently available evidence we are not able to give recommendations for the use of MIS in the treatment of solid intra-thoracic or intra-abdominal neoplasms in children. More high quality studies (RCTs and/or CCTs) are needed. To accomplish this, centres specialising in MIS in children should collaborate.

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    Dataset: Successful thoracoscopic thymectomy in an infant Timectomia toracoscópica bem sucedida em um lactente Letter to the Editor
    Damian Palafox, Brenda Tello-López, Miguel Angel Vichido-Luna, Walid Leonardo Dajer-Fadel, José Palafox
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    ABSTRACT: To the Editor: Minimally invasive surgery is gaining worldwide acceptance for the treatment of mediastinal tumors in children. It has been shown to have several advantages over conventional open surgical approaches. For instance, Lawal et al. showed that thoracoscopy, in comparison with thoracotomy, was associated with significantly fewer midterm musculoskeletal sequelae and a better cosmetic outcome. (1) The authors also found that chest asymmetry in the horizontal plane was significantly less frequent after video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) than after conventional surgery (mean relative difference, 0.996 ± 0.003 vs. 0.964 ± 0.008; p < 0.001), as was scoliosis (9% vs. 54%; p < 0.001). (1) Another group of authors demonstrated that undesirable comorbidities, such as rib fusion, deformities of the thorax, and scoliosis, can be avoided using thoracoscopic procedures. (2) For anterior mediastinal masses in children, less invasive approaches are preferred, because of the wide spectrum of clinical manifestations associated with such masses. (3) Here, we present the case of an eighteen-month-old infant who underwent thoracoscopic thymectomy, which proved to be safe and provided a satisfactory clinical outcome. We believe that it is of the utmost importance that the thoracoscopic approach be promoted to pediatric pulmonologists and thoracic surgeons. An eighteen-month-old male infant presented with a six-month history of recurrent respiratory infections. He had previously been diagnosed with bronchiolitis, which had been treated with bronchodilators and symptomatic management. However, poor results had been obtained. There was no record of any previous hospitalization, and no imaging studies had been performed before he was referred to our facility. He was hospitalized during an acute episode of severe dyspnea. Simple X-rays showed a widened mediastinum and a mass in the anterior mediastinum. Therefore, CT was performed. The presence of an anterior mediastinal mass was confirmed. The mass was solid, without any cystic or calcified areas. The results of all laboratory tests were normal, including those for tumor markers. We decided to perform elective surgery based on his history of infections and progressive dyspnea. Other causes of enlarged mediastinum and dyspnea, such as bronchogenic cysts, were ruled out. We decided to use a thoracoscopic approach. The tumor was found to be thymus-dependent and the surgery therefore consisted of thoracoscopic thymectomy. The patient was anesthetized, and a double-lumen endotracheal tube was used in order to perform single-lung ventilation, which has been shown to be a safe procedure. (4) We used a left-sided approach. The surgical technique was performed in accordance with one of our previous reports. (5) In brief, the surgical technique involves the use of three ports; one is placed in the fourth intercostal space in the anterior axillary line; another is placed in the fifth intercostal space in the posterior axillary line; and the third is placed in the seventh space in the anterior axillary line. The camera can be moved from one port to another during the surgery. We begin the procedure with the identification of the phrenic nerve, followed by the dissection of the right inferior pole of the thymus and the placement of vascular clips (one to three) on the thymic veins close to the venous brachiocephalic trunk. We then dissect the left pole in a similar fashion (Figure 1). We continue with gentle cephalic-to-caudal traction of the right superior lobe, placing clips deep into the cervical tissue. Then, the left superior lobe is also dissected in order to complete the excision of the gland (Figure 2). Finally, we resect the mediastinal adipose tissue from the cardiophrenic angle up to the pretracheal and perivascular fat. A chest tube was placed intraoperatively and removed after the first 24 h. The histopathological examination of the tissue confirmed thymoma. The postoperative course
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Keywords

accepted surgical technique
 
biopsy specimens
 
clinical trials
 
Cochrane Library 2011
 
definitive conclusions
 
Diagnostic MIS
 
event-free survival
 
intra-abdominal neoplasms
 
minimally invasive
 
Minimally invasive surgery
 
ongoing trial databases
 
open approach
 
paediatric surgical oncology
 
pre-specified terms
 
Randomised
 
relevant articles
 
solid intra-thoracic
 
solid neoplasms
 
study selection
 
surgical morbidity