Retrospective analysis of safety and diagnostic efficacy of CT-guided robotic-assisted transthoracic lung biopsies

Objective. To analyze the safety and diagnostic value of transthoracic robot-assisted CT-guided lung tumor biopsy. Material and methods. A retrospective analysis of 537 biopsy procedures in patients with solid lung lesions ≥1 cm in diameter was conducted. Biopsies were performed under synchronized multislice CT guidance using the PERFINT MAXIO robotic navigation system. The yield of informative material, diagnostic parameters (sensitivity, specificity, accuracy), and complications assessed using the Clavien-Dindo scale were assessed. Results. Informative material was obtained in 91.8% of cases (493/537). The sensitivity of the method in verifying malignant tumors was 93.9% (95% CI 91.2—96.0%), specificity was 100% (95% CI 96.3—100%), accuracy was 95.1% (95% CI 92.9—96.8%). Complications developed in 15.5% of patients (83 patients): pneumothorax — in 11.0% (59 patients), of which drainage of the pleural cavity was required in 83.1% of cases (49 patients); hemothorax — in 2.8% (15 patients); hemoptysis — in 1.7% (9 patients). Complications of I-II degree (not requiring invasive interventions) were registered in 6.3% of patients. There were no fatal outcomes. No statistically significant differences in complication rates or diagnostic efficacy were found between 16G and 18G needles. Conclusion. CT-guided transthoracic robotic-assisted biopsy demonstrates high diagnostic accuracy (95.1%) and an acceptable safety profile, allowing it to be recommended for the verification of malignant lung tumors.