Lung ultrasound on first postoperative day predicts out-of-hospital pulmonary complications following video-assisted thoracic surgery

BACKGROUND: The integration of enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols into the peri-operative management of video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) has facilitated rapid patient recovery, enabling discharge within 48 h. However, postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs) postdischarge pose significant concerns for patient welfare. Despite the established utility of lung ultrasound (LUS) in diagnosing the causes of dyspnoea, the effectiveness of quantitative LUS in predicting PPCs after VATS remains uncertain. OBJECTIVES: To determine whether quantitative LUS performed 24 h after surgery can identify patients with a higher risk of developing PPCs within 30 days after discharge from hospital. DESIGN: Single-centre prospective cohort study. SETTING: Academic tertiary care medical centre. PATIENTS: Adults scheduled for elective VATS under general anaesthesia from November 2022 to January 2023. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: This primary aim was to verify the association between lung ultrasound score (LUSS) on postoperative day 1 (POD1) and PPCs. The secondary aim was to identify other relevant peri-operative factors closely related to PPCs and establish a model capable of predicting the risk of PPCs in patients undergoing fast-track VATS. RESULTS: Of the 200 recruited patients, 182 completed the LUS examination and 30-day follow-up. Of these, 66 (36.2%) developed various types of PPCs. These patients had a higher LUSS on POD 1 ( P < 0.001), and more subpleural consolidation areas compared to those without PPCs ( P < 0.001). Receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) analysis identified the optimal LUSS cut-off value at 6 points for predicting the occurrence of PPCs, with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.838 (95% CI, 0.768 to 0.909). Patients with PPCs had higher rates of immune system diseases and ARISCAT score, longer hospital stay and procalcitonin levels, increased frequency of lobar resection, longer durations of surgical and mechanical ventilation, and greater incidence of unplanned hospital readmissions within 30 days postdischarge, compared with those without PPCs (all P < 0.001). Multivariable logistic regression analysis indicated that the comorbidity of immune system disease, along with postoperative 24 h LUSS, were independent risk factor for PPCs within 30 days after VATS. CONCLUSION: LUSS on POD 1 emerged as an independent risk factor for PPCs in fast-track VATS patients and reliably predicted the occurrence of PPCs within 30 days of hospital discharge. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials. gov No. ChiCTR2200065865.