OBJECTIVES : Pneumonectomy in children is a rare procedure, al­though various types of pulmonary re­sections are done daily for patients in this age group. We have reviewed our experience in the last 9 years, to out­line the indications and identify the complications of pneumonectomy in our locality. We compared our results with the scanty information in the pub­lished literature.
Methods : From January, 1995 to December, 2003 we performed 20 pneumonectomies in children 15 years and younger. These cases were done in Mansoura University Hospitals (MUH) and King Fahd Spe­cialist Hospital (KFSH). There were 8 males and 12 females, their ages ranged from 4 days to 15 years.
Pneumonectomies were done through the classical posterelateral thoracoto-my in the 4th or 5th intercostal space.
RESULTS : The indications for pneumonectomy were destroyed lung 6 cases (30%), bronchiectasis 4 cas­es (20%), acquired main bronchial stricture 3 cases (15%), congenital pulmonary abnormalities 2 cases (10%), severe traumatic lung lacera­tion 2 cases (10%), carcinoid tumors 2 cases (10%) and failed repair of avulsed left main bronchus 1 case
There was a single mortality in this series and it was related to the severi­ty of the trauma, and not related to the pneumonectomy. There were no intraoperative complications, while im­mediate postoperative complications