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Whole lung lavage (WLL), also called lung washing, is a medical procedure in which the patient's lungs are washed with saline (salt water) by filling and draining repeatedly. It is used to treat pulmonary alveolar proteinosis , in which excess lung surfactant proteins prevent the patient from breathing.
Lung surgery is a type of thoracic surgery involving the repair or removal of lung tissue, [1] and can be used to treat a variety of conditions ranging from lung cancer to pulmonary hypertension. Common operations include anatomic and nonanatomic resections, pleurodesis and lung transplants .
The "Heber-Drain" is based on the Heber principle, which uses hydrostatic pressure to transfer fluid from the chest to a collection canister. It produces permanent passive suction. As the Heber drain is a classical gravity drain, the canister must be placed below chest level to be active. The difference in height between the floor and the ...
Chemicals such as bleomycin, tetracycline (e.g., minocycline), [2] povidone-iodine, or a slurry of talc can be introduced into the pleural space through a chest drain. The instilled chemicals cause irritation between the parietal and the visceral layers of the pleura which closes off the space between them and prevents further fluid from accumulating. [3]
Complications are not common but include infection, lung abscess, and bronchopleural fistula (a fistula between the pleural space and the bronchial tree). [4] A bronchopleural fistula results when there is a communication between the laceration, a bronchiole, and the pleura; it can cause air to leak into the pleural space despite the placement of a chest tube. [4]
Chest tube clogging can lead to retained blood around the heart and lungs that can contribute to complications and increase mortality. [11] A common complication after thoracic surgery that arises within 30–50% of patients are air leaks. If a chest tube clogs when there is an air leak the patient will develop a pneumothorax.
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Pulmonary hygiene, also referred to as pulmonary toilet, [1] is a set of methods used to clear mucus and secretions from the airways.The word pulmonary refers to the lungs.The word toilet, related to the French toilette, refers to body care and hygiene; this root is used in words such as toiletry that also relate to cleansing.