1998 Volume 12 Issue 4 Pages 474-481
After right upper (RU) lobectomy the orifice of the middle lobe bronchus (RMLB) is round in some cases but is deformed in others. To analyze the cause of the deformity, we measured the conjugate and transversal axis and areas of the orifice of the RMLB by bronchofiberscopic measurement. In group A (n=6), the orifice of the RMLB was round before and after the RU lobectomy. In group B (n=5), the orifice was round before the surgery but was deformed afterwards. In group B, the conjugate-to-transversal axis (c/t) ratios were lower and the anastomotic lines of the right upper lobe were 1-3 rings apart from the bifurcation when compared with group A. In group C (n=3), the orifice was semicircular before and after the surgery, but in group D (n=9), the orifice was deformed after the surgery. In group C, the c /t ratios were higher than in group D. When the orifice was semicircular before the RU lobectomy, the deformity of the orifice of the RMLB was common after the surgery. And when the c/t ratios were lower than 45% (50mm2) before the surgery, these cases had severe stenosis (35mm2, c/t ratios <0.3) after the surgery (n=4, group D).
