Comparison of the safety and effectiveness of the four-hook needle and hook wire for the preoperative positioning of localization ground glass nodules.

backgroundWith the implementation of lung cancer screening programs, an increasing number of pulmonary nodules have been detected.Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) could provide adequate tissue specimens for pathological analysis, and has few postoperative complications.However, locating the nodules intraoperatively by palpation can be difficult for thoracic surgeons. The preoperative pulmonary nodule localization technique is a very effective method.We compared the safety and effectiveness of two methods for the preoperative localization of pulmonary ground glass nodules.

methodsFrom October 2020 to April 2021, 133 patients who underwent CT-guided single pulmonary nodule localization were retrospectively reviewed. All patients underwent video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) after successful localization. Statistical analysis was used to evaluate the localization accuracy, safety, information related to surgery and postoperative pathology information. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical effects of the two localization needles.

resultsThe mean maximal transverse nodule diameters in the four-hook needle and hook wire groups were 8.97 ± 3.85 mm and 9.00 ± 3.19 mm, respectively (P = 0.967). The localization times in the four-hook needle and hook wire groups were 20.58 ± 2.65 min and 21.43 ± 3.06 min, respectively (P = 0.09). The dislodgement rate was significantly higher in the hook wire group than in the four-hook needle group (7.46% vs. 0, P = 0.024). The mean patient pain scores based on the visual analog scale in the four-hook needle and hook wire groups were 2.87 ± 0.67 and 6.10 ± 2.39, respectively (P = 0.000). All ground glass nodules (GGNs) were successfully resected by VATS.

conclusionsPreoperative pulmonary nodule localization with both a four-hook needle and hook wire is safe, convenient and effective.