Sitting next to the doctors who present the new treatment, nothing indicates that Philippe is embarrassed to breathe. And for good reason ! Since the team of Professor Charles-Hugo Marquette, head of the pneumology department at the Nice University Hospital, put spirals in his lung, twelve on each side, he has come back to life. But Philippe has come a long way. “Going from lying down to standing in the morning lasted half an hour. Taking a shower was a big deal, I had to prepare myself, anticipate each gesture. From the day after the operation, I was able to relive normally ” , says this 62-year-old man.
Heavy smoker for 45 years, he only realized the seriousness of his condition when he came out of the coma in which the doctors had had to plunge him to treat severe lung infection. So, 2 years later, when he was offered a new treatment, he didn’t hesitate.
What is emphysema?
It is the loss of elasticity in the lung that makes it more and more difficult to empty the air on exhalation. The emphysematous areas tend to occupy an increasing place in the lungs, and the breathing difficulties are more and more important. Tobacco is the main culprit.
Of course, all people with emphysema (now called COPD for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) do not fall into a coma. But many find themselves with an oxygen cylinder in their living room and the anguish of being too short of breath.
10 centers perform the intervention in France
Carried out during a short hospitalization, the installation of the spirals is carried out by natural means. A catheter containing the coil in an upright position is introduced into the bronchi by means of a bronchoscope, under fluoroscopic control. Once arrived at the location chosen by the doctor, the spiral, which has shape memory, twists again to grip the lung tissue. We usually put ten in one lobe and then, three months later, ten in another, on the other side.
Goal : reduce air pockets that prevent stale air from coming out. The patient leaves the day after the operation with, in the majority of cases, a significant improvement in his quality of life, in particular his breathing capacity during exercise.
In France, the ten centers that perform this procedure are those that participated in the Revolens study, carried out independently of the laboratory that sells the spirals. It aimed to compare the installation of these devices with medical treatment alone, and shows that they bring a better well-being allowing to resume with the exercises of respiratory training with the effort.
An alternative to heavy treatments
The conditions to be eligible for this treatment? To have stop smoking, treat yourself with drugs that dilate the bronchi, have completed a respiratory rehabilitation course but still be very short of breath.
This innovation represents an alternative to other heavy treatments for emphysema, such as lung transplantation. Discussions for reimbursement of the intervention are in progress.
With the collaboration of Prof. Charles-Hugo Marquette, head of the pneumology department of the CHU de Nice and Prof. Gaetan Deslée, head of the pneumology department of the CHU of Reims.
Read also :
Being hospitalized for pneumonia increases cardiovascular risk
COPD: too many patients ignore their disease
COPD: if you needed just one reason to quit smoking
