Reduction of postoperative pulmonary complications after lung surgery using a fast track clinical pathway

Abstract

We evaluated an optimized patient care program for patients undergoing lung resections in a prospective randomized pilot study. Using this fast track clinical pathway the rate of pulmonary complications could be significantly decreased as compared to a conservative treatment regimen; our results support the implementation of an optimized perioperative treatment in lung surgery in order to reduce pulmonary complications after major lung surgery.