ABSTRACT
Pleural adhesions are found in many pulmonary diseases that undergo chronic inflammation. As such, they are a product of a prolonged immune response, such as that seen in patients with bronchiectasis. In the surgical theater, adhesions endlessly create challenges both peri- and postoperatively. Commonly, they are taken down bluntly and/or with electrocautery predominantly during a thoracotomy because the challenges adhesions introduce have created guidelines that express their relative contraindication in minimally invasive thoracic surgery (MITS). However, with the advent of the da Vinci robot, cases with pleural adhesions can be successfully undertaken robotically. We undertook a case involving a male with a history of bronchiectasis, who harbored extensive pleural adhesions during the surgical procedure, yet we successfully performed a robotic left lower lobe lobectomy without any complications.
