Chronic pain after posterolateral and axillary approaches to lung surgery: a monocentric observational study.

PURPOSE: Post-thoracotomy pain syndrome (PTPS) and chronic postsurgical neuropathic pain (CPNP) were evaluated 4 months after thoracic surgery whether the approach was a posterolateral (PL) incision or the less invasive axillary (AX) one. METHODS: Patients, 79 in each group, undergoing a thoracotomy between July 2014 and November 2015 were analyzed 4 months after surgery in this prospective monocentric cohort study. RESULTS: More PL patients suffered PTPS (60.8% vs. 40.5%; p = 0.017) but CPNP was equally present (45.8% and 46.9% in the PL and AX groups). Patients with PTPS have more limited daily activities (p < 0.001) but a similar psychological disability (i.e., catastrophism). Patients with CPNP have an even greater limitation of daily activities (p = 0.007) and more catastrophism (p = 0.0002). Intensity of pain during mobilization of the homolateral shoulder at postoperative day 6 (OR = 1.40, CI 95% [1.13-1.75], p = 0.002); age (OR = 0.97 [0.94-1.00], p = 0.022), and presence of pain before surgery (OR = 2.22 [1.00-4.92], p = 0.049) are related to the occurrence of PTPS; while, height of hypoesthesia area on the breast line measured 6 days after surgery is the only factor related to that of CPNP (OR = 1.14 [1.01-1.30], p = 0.036). CONCLUSION: Minimally invasive surgery was associated with less frequent PTPS, but with equal risk of CPNP. Pain before surgery and its postoperative intensity are associated with PTPS. This must lead to a more aggressive care of pain patients before surgery and of a better management of postoperative pain. CPNP can be forecasted according to the early postoperative height of hypoesthesia area on the breast line.

Early Postoperative Pain Trajectories after Posterolateral and Axillary Approaches to Thoracic Surgery: A Prospective Monocentric Observational Study.

Less-invasive thoracotomies may reduce early postoperative pain. The aims of this study were to identify pain trajectories from postoperative days 0-5 after posterolateral and axillary thoracotomies and to identify potential factors related to the worst trajectory. Patients undergoing a posterolateral (92 patients) or axillary (89 patients) thoracotomy between July 2014 and November 2015 were analyzed in this prospective monocentric cohort study. The best-fitting model resulted in four pain trajectory groups: trajectory 1, the "worst", with 29.8% of the patients with permanent significant pain; trajectory 2 with patients with low pain (32.6%); trajectory 3 with patients with a steep decrease in pain (22.7%); and trajectory 4 with patients with a steep increase (14.9%). According to a multinomial logistic model multivariable analysis, some predictive factors allow for differentiation between trajectory groups 1 and 2. Risk factors for permanent pain are the existence of preoperative pain (OR = 6.94, CI 95% (1.54-31.27)) and scar length (OR = 1.20 (1.05-1.38)). In contrast, ASA class III is a protective factor in group 1 (OR = 0.02 (0.001-0.52)). In conclusion, early postoperative pain can be characterized by four trajectories and preoperative pain is a major factor for the worst trajectory of early postoperative pain.