Doctors at HCM City’s Cho Ray Hospital are set to routinely use the video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery technique after perfecting it by performing a few dozen surgeries over the past year.

VũHữuVĩnh, head of the hospital’s thoracic surgery department, performed a live demonstration for the Asia Thoracoscopic Surgery Education Program in HCM City last Friday.

Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery is a minimally invasive surgical technique that can be used to perform a variety of operations such as lobectomy, esophagectomy and thymectomy, Vĩnh said.

Its benefits are a shorter recovery time and lower costs, he said.

The hospital has performed the procedure on 47 patients over the past year.

It was the first time Vietnam  hosted the Asia Thoracoscopic Surgery Education Programme which wrapped up last Saturday.

It offered an opportunity for local thoracic surgeons to learn advanced techniques from and share experiences with 12 foreign experts.

VNS