Managing Thoracic Empyema

Abstract

From, 1954 to 1964, 114 adults with empyema were treated at the University of Wisconsin Hospitals. Twenty-five cases followed thoracic surgery, 20 were secondary to bronchopleural fistulas, and 40 were in patients with a history of pneumonia. To treat empyema, surgeons generally resected 5 to 10 cm of rib at the dependent part of the empyema cavity, probed the cavity to determine its size, shape and bottom, inserted large-caliber drainage tubes, and applied an empyema jacket.