Table 4. Comparisions of outcomes between VATS thymectomy and transthoracic thymectomy in short term (n=85).
| Variables | VATS (n=38) | Thoracotomy (n=47) | P# |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gender (female) | 19 (50.00%) | 26 (55.32%) | 0.625 |
| Age [years] | 50.50 [25-72] | 50.06 [21-76] | 0.502 |
| BMI* [range] | 24.97 [18-34] | 24.64 [18-32] | 0.667 |
| Myasthenia gravis (%) | 5 (13.16) | 4 (8.51) | 0.505 |
| Tumor size (cm) | 5.4 (2.5-13) | 7.2 (3.0-13.0) | <0.001 |
| Muller-Hermelink classification (%) | 0.148 | ||
| A | 2 (5.26) | 7 (14.89) | |
| B1 | 6 (15.79) | 10 (21.28) | |
| B2 | 11 (28.95) | 5 (10.64) | |
| B3 | 2 (5.26) | 1 (2.13) | |
| AB | 16 (42.11) | 24 (51.06) | |
| Massaoka staging (%) | 0.119 | ||
| I | 17 (44.74) | 29 (61.70) | |
| II | 21 (55.26) | 18 (38.30) | |
| Postoperative hospital LOS* [days] | 5.26 [2-13] | 7.53 [4-13] | <0.001 |
| ICU* LOS [hours] | 4.26 [0-90] | 9.70 [0-96] | 0.239 |
| Operation time [minutes] | 127.84 [30-300] | 95.64 [55-160] | 0.002 |
| Blood loss [mL] | 114.74 [20-600] | 175.53 [50-1500] | 0.123 |
| Completeness of covering membrane (%) | 36 (94.74) | 43 (91.49) | 0.687 |
| Number of chest tubes | 1.11 [1-2] | 1.02 [1-2] | 0.131 |
| Quantity of chest tube output [mL] | 619.68 [100-1,580] | 890.89 [100-2,720] | 0.022 |
| Duration of drainage [days] | 3.78 [2-10] | 4.79 [2-9] | 0.009 |
*, LOS, length of stay; ICU, intensive care unit; BMI, body mass index; #, gender, symptoms, myasthenia gravis, hypertension and Massaoka staging were analyzed by Pearson chi-square test. Diabetes mellitus, coronary heart disease and Muller-Hermelink classification were analyzed by Fisher’s exact test. The rest of variables of patients characteristics were analyzed by t-test. All perioperative variables were analyzed by t-test except the completeness of covering membrane that was done by Fisher’s exact test. P≤0.05 was regarded as statistic significance.