ABSTRACT
Infectious diseases are the most frequent cause of thoracic disease in the world. The most common of these infectious diseases is tuberculosis caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis. After infectious diseases, trauma and lung carcinoma cause the most morbidity and mortality. Major thoracic diseases are accompanied by a high mortality due to the following reasons: development of drug resistance in infectious etiologies, lack of surveillance and appropriate administration of drug regimens, and lack of access to medical facilities with sufficient anesthesia and surgical capabilities to perform curative procedures. Major general thoracic surgical procedures are associated with a higher morbidity and mortality than the vast majority of nonthoracic surgical procedures, and therefore require an advanced minimum surgical capacity to perform safely.
