Prevention and treatment of complications of CT-guided percutaneous radiofrequency ablation for lung cancer / 中华放射学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the complications caused by CT-guided percutaneous radiofrequency ablations (RFA) for lung cancer and analyze the prevention approach. Methods A total of 125 lung cancer patients (142 RFA treatments) in our hospital were enrolled in this study between July 2015 and June 2017. This retrospective study analyzed the reasons and the strategies for preventing the complications. Results One hundred and twenty?five patients underwent RFA treatment for lung lesions. All the operations were successfully completed. During the treatment, 18 patients showed hemorrhage (3 of CTCAE grade 3 hemorrhage); 16 patients showed pneumothorax, among which, 15 patients have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; 28 patients showed chest pain (23 cases were located under the pleura); 3 patients showed pneumonia;1 patient showed pulmonary abscess, which located in the subpleural space with a maximum diameter of ＞3 cm; 1 patient showed pulmonary embolism, and 1 patient with scald. Complications were attenuated after symptomatic treatment. Conclusion The main reasons of complications of RFA in treating lung cancer were direct injuries caused by punctures, tumors with abundant blood supplement, tumors adjacent to pleura, low scores of lung function, coagulation disorders, and diabetes. The key points for avoiding and reducing complications are preoperative evaluation of patients' basic situations, exclusion of intraoperative avoidable technical risk factors.