Extended posterior vertical axillary thoracotomy

Abstract

Axillary thoracotomies are among the most described and modified in the history of surgery. Despite the sustained development of video-assisted thoracic surgery, the role of classic thoracotomies in current surgical practice is unavoidable, especially when minimally invasive options are not available. Extended posterior vertical axillary thoracotomy emerged almost 30 years ago from the introduction of innovative modifications to axillary thoracic incisions previously described. An extensive literature review makes it possible to affirm that an axillary thoracotomy, which contains all the distinctive features that the one presented herein, has never been reported before. Its main advantages are discussed in relation to the decrease in the operating time and complications during and after surgery.