• Yaron Perry and Hiran C Fernando.
• Memorial Health University Medical Center, 4700 Waters Ave, Savannah, GA 31403, USA. yaronperry@rocketmail.com
• J. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg.. 2012 Sep 1;144(3):S63-6.

AbstractThe adoption of minimally invasive esophagectomy has increased worldwide since its first description more than 15 years ago. The technique has evolved from a transhiatal to a 3-hole McKeowan approach and, more recently, to a minimally invasive Ivor Lewis approach. We reviewed the technique and results of 3-hole minimally invasive esophagectomy. We favor thoracoscopic esophageal mobilization with the patient in a lateral decubitus position, although other groups have reported this with a prone or robotic approach. Several series have demonstrated low perioperative mortality with minimally invasive esophagectomy. A major advantage compared with esophagectomy with thoracotomy is a lower incidence of respiratory complications, which have been shown to be a significant predictor of mortality in other studies.Copyright © 2012 The American Association for Thoracic Surgery. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

14 keywords...

hide…