2015 Volume 29 Issue 6 Pages 765-769
A 71-year-old woman with non-tuberculous mycobacteriosis (NTM) and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy was emergently admitted to another hospital due to a right secondary spontaneous pneumothorax. Chest drainage was performed, but air leakage from the drainage tube continued. The patient was transferred to our hospital for surgery. Although we performed an operation under video-assisted thoracic surgery, partial lung resection was considered impossible since the responsible lesion was a bulla located on the interlobar surface of an indurated lung because of NTM. So, we performed electroablation of the bulla using the SOFT COAG electrosurgical output system, and air leakage consequently disappeared. The SOFT COAG electrosurgical output system was suggested to be appropriate and effective for the treatment of pneumothorax if partial lung resection is difficult.
