Tuberculosis Surgery Department

The Tuberculosis Surgery Department of our hospital (Thoracic Surgery Ward 2) was established on August 31, 2012. Based on the entire team of thoracic surgeons, it is equipped with an independent ward, nursing team, operating room, and interventional catheterization room, and is an important component of our hospital’s Tuberculosis Diagnosis and Treatment Center. The team has 14 physicians: 3 chief physicians, 4 associate chief physicians, 4 attending physicians, and 4 resident physicians. It also includes Dr. Chen Qixun, Director of the Department of Thoracic Surgery of Zhejiang Cancer Hospital and a specially appointed Qianjiang expert, who provides outpatient consultations and surgical guidance every month. The Tuberculosis Surgery Department (Thoracic Surgery Ward 2) mainly uses surgical and interventional approaches to address the diagnostic and treatment problems of tuberculosis that are difficult to resolve through conservative internal-medicine treatment. It is an extension of the internal-medicine treatment of tuberculosis and a provider of further diagnostic and treatment technologies. The main clinical services currently provided by the Tuberculosis Surgery Department (Thoracic Surgery Ward 2) include the following: 1. Interventional treatment of hemoptysis caused by tuberculosis, bronchiectasis, nontuberculous mycobacteria, and other conditions; occult hemoptysis of unknown cause; complex massive hemoptysis caused by pulmonary artery aneurysms, pulmonary arteriovenous malformations, and other conditions; and pulmonary vascular diseases such as pulmonary arteriovenous malformations, pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas, pulmonary artery stenosis, pulmonary vein stenosis, and congenital pulmonary sequestration; interventional treatment of acute and chronic pulmonary embolism; and treatment of refractory massive hemoptysis caused by various conditions through a combination of interventional procedures and surgical operations. Through multiple hybrid techniques, including combined thoracic surgical resection, the hemoptysis problem has been successfully resolved in more than 95％ of patients. Since March 2016, the department has established a 24-hour emergency hemoptysis clinic and has successfully treated more than 2000 patients with massive hemoptysis. Through close cooperation with the Tuberculosis Intensive Care Unit, the mortality rates from hemoptysis and massive hemoptysis at our hospital’s Tuberculosis Center have been greatly reduced. In addition, our department has considerable advantages in the diagnosis and treatment of the following diseases: 1, using thoracic surgical techniques to treat complex and refractory pulmonary tuberculosis; 2. Surgical treatment of drug-resistant pulmonary tuberculosis: through active surgical treatment, the diseased pulmonary lobe is removed to achieve conversion of the patient’s sputum culture to negative. 3. Surgical treatment of nontuberculous mycobacteria: through complete surgical resection combined with a full course of appropriate combination drug therapy, the cure rate has been greatly increased. 4. Surgical treatment of tuberculous constrictive pericarditis: through thoracotomy, the constrictive pericardium is stripped, and the patient’s symptoms are rapidly relieved after surgery, allowing recovery of health. At the same time, for patients with early tuberculous pericarditis, the department performs early pericardial fenestration through minimally invasive thoracoscopic surgery, effectively reducing the possibility of later pericardial thickening and constriction. 5. Surgical treatment of tuberculous empyema: through thoracotomy and minimally invasive surgery, the lesions are completely cleared, the deformed thorax is reconstructed, and standardized drug treatment is combined to effectively reduce the recurrence rate. 6. Surgical treatment of lymph node tuberculosis: regional lymph node dissection for lymph node tuberculosis has been carried out to completely remove the lesions in a single procedure. The incision is regular and heals well with a satisfactory cosmetic appearance, achieving therapeutic results while also meeting patients’ cosmetic needs. 7. Using minimally invasive techniques to diagnose and treat diseases that are difficult to differentiate, such as small pulmonary nodules, pleural effusion, and pericardial effusion. Since the establishment of the Tuberculosis Surgery Department, through the concerted cooperation of affiliated departments including Tuberculosis Internal Medicine, the Tuberculosis Intensive Care Unit, the Tuberculosis Laboratory, the Interventional Center, the Ultrasound Room, and the Department of Radiology, it has brought hope for life to countless patients troubled by tuberculosis who had lost confidence in life and the future. The surgical and interventional treatments provided by the Tuberculosis Surgery Department have established a distinctive technical profile for our hospital’s Tuberculosis Center among peers in the province and in society. The department is a tuberculosis surgical technology provider with strong capabilities in the province. Through close cooperation with Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital and Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, which have outstanding capabilities in tuberculosis surgical treatment nationwide, and through continuous improvement in technology and advancement of service concepts, the department hopes to provide health services to more patients in the future. Team Honors: Zhejiang Anti-Cancer Association Integrated Lung Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment Center; Chinese Thoracic Surgery ERAS Demonstration Project Accelerated Recovery Surgery Demonstration Ward; High-Skilled Talent (Model Worker) Innovation Studio; Chairing Organization of the Zhejiang Regional Alliance of the China Chest Wall Alliance; Council Member Organization of the China Bleeding Center Alliance; Member Organization of the Respiratory Interventional Radiology Club. Department WeChat account: Thoracic Department of Hangzhou Red Cross Hospital.