Pneumonia

Description

Alternative Names

Surgery

Although most patients with pneumonia do not require invasive therapy, patients with abscess, empyema, or certain other complications may require treatment with thoracentesis, bronchoscopy, or thoracotomy.

Surgery (Thoracotomy). Thoracotomy is the standard surgery. It requires general anesthesia and an incision to open the chest and view the lungs. With this approach the surgeon can remove necrotic (dead) or damaged lung tissue and, in severe cases, the entire lobe (lobectomy). In such cases, the remaining healthy lung tissue re-expands after surgery to compensate for any removed tissue.

Chest Tubes

Chest tubes are used to drain infected pleural fluid. (They are not typically required for pneumonia or abscesses.) The tubes are inserted under local anesthetic and remain in place for two to four days. The tubes are then removed in one quick movement without anesthetic and can be very distressing, although some patients experience no discomfort. Complications of chest tubes include infection, accidental injury of the lung, perforation of the diaphragm, and fluid build-up within the lung if the pleural fluid is removed too rapidly. Removing the chest tubes occasionally causes the lung to collapse requiring the reintroduction of a chest tube to inflate the lung.