Introduction The practice of thoracic anesthesia, in addition to involving patients with impaired pulmonary function, also necessitates dynamic changes in ventilation that impact perfusion and ventilation/perfusion matching. Thus it is imperative that the thoracic anesthesiologist has a thorough understanding of…
Introduction Thoracic oncology encompasses a large spectrum of diseases. Between the various anatomic spaces and the different organ systems, there are a large variety of benign and malignant tumors that can develop within the chest. This chapter will focus primarily…
Introduction Radiologic images play an important role in the preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative evaluation, and diagnosis of patients undergoing thoracic surgery. During the preoperative visit for evaluation of the thoracic surgical patient, the clinician must have an understanding of the…
The respiratory and circulatory systems play a major role in the transportation of oxygen from the atmosphere to mitochondria and transportation of carbon dioxide from cells to the atmosphere. They accomplish these tasks by alternate steps of convection and diffusion.…
Introduction The history of anesthesia for thoracic surgery incorporates much of the history of anesthesia because contemporary thoracic anesthesia is a culmination of advances in all aspects of anesthesia. Knowledge and expertise with preoperative evaluation, airway management, intraoperative monitoring, pharmacologic…