[Surgical staging of pulmonary carcinoma. Probability of error]. / Stadiazione chirurgica del carcinoma polmonare. Probabilità di errore.

234 patients with lung cancer and operated in Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery Department of Careggi Hospital in Florence have been evaluated in order to examine surgical staging accuracy in comparison with pathological staging. There is a statistically significative difference between surgical and pathological staging as a datum point. Surgeon is inclined to over-estimate the lymph-nodes involvement and the primitive tumor extension. It is important to bear in mind this bent whenever decisions of surgical strategy have to be taken.

[Features and evolution of postoperative pain in patients undergoing thoracotomy]. / Caratteristiche ed evoluzione del dolore postoperatorio in pazienti sottoposti a toracotomia.

We examined in this perspective study 30 patients (15 males and 15 females) who undergone classic thoracotomy for lung or mediastinal diseases, without postoperative complications. Intensity and different qualitative components of postoperative pain have been evaluated in the 1st, 3rd, 5th, the day after last pleural drainage removal and 2 months after the operation. All patients answered a schedule adherent to Questionario Italiano del Dolore (QUID). Pain became less intense chiefly with drainage removal with the same time trend for both sex (parallel curves). Pain is probably stronger in women. From a qualitative point of view, the sensorial component is the same in both sexes. Affective and evaluative component is greater in women: in other words, women realize more than men the painful stimulus and are more troubled. A computerized analysis of answers to a questionnaire like QUID or, better, its evolution, may be helpful for a more effective pharmacological choice between pure analgesics, sedative analgesics and ataractic drugs.