Comparative study of the clinical efficacy of subcostal thoracoscopy and median sternotomy in treating thymoma: a propensity score-matching analysis

ObjectiveThis study was performed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of subcostal thoracoscopy and median sternotomy as surgical approaches for thymoma resection and lymph node dissection. The feasibility, safety, and clinical outcomes of subcostal thoracoscopy were compared with those of median sternotomy.MethodsThe clinical data of 335 patients with thymoma were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into the subcostal thoracoscopy group and the median sternotomy group. Propensity score matching was performed to obtain comparable subsets of 50 patients in each group. A comparative analysis was conducted on various parameters.ResultsAll surgeries were successful, and no conversions to open thoracotomy were required in the subcostal thoracoscopy group. Significant differences in the operative time, intraoperative blood loss, chest tube drainage duration, postoperative hospital stay, patient satisfaction scores, pain assessment, and postoperative complications were observed between the two groups. However, there was no significant difference in the number of lymph nodes or lymph node stations dissected intraoperatively between the two groups.ConclusionSubcostal thoracoscopy is not inferior to median sternotomy as a surgical approach for thymoma resection and lymph node dissection. Our research provides important new comparative data on minimally invasive thymoma resection.