Comparison of radiopaque dye materials for localization of pulmonary nodules before video-assisted thoracic surgery

Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) is increasingly being performed for partial lobectomy for pulmonary nodules because it is less invasive than thoracotomy and offers the possibility of therapeutic diagnosis (1,2). However, because small or ground-grass opacity nodules are difficult to detect on thoracoscopy, localization is required prior to VATS (3,4). Several percutaneous localization techniques have been reported, including hook-wire insertion (5-7), radionuclide injection (7,8), contrast medium (lipiodol or barium) injection (9-11), and dye injection (12-17). However, these each have advantages and disadvantages, and there is no consensus regarding which technique is superior for lung nodule localization