Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery

Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) has without a doubt revolutionized the practice of thoracic surgeons and improved patient experiences and outcomes worldwide. VATS lobectomy represents a true success story, a surgical approach which has matured over the past decades and now accounts for approximately 45% of all lobectomies in the Society of Thoracic Surgeons General Thoracic Database (1,2). The utilization of the VATS technique is increasing rapidly in the US, Asia and Europe, in light of the overwhelming benefits for this approach. In particular, VATS has now become the treatment of choice for patients undergoing pulmonary resections at tertiary referral hospitals, whereas open thoracotomy is reserved for complicated cases.