Should laparoscopic paraesophageal hernia repair be abandoned in favor of the open approach?
Laparoscopic repair should remain in the forefront for the management of paraesophageal hernias. However, there is considerable room for improvement in reducing the incidence of recurrence.
Chest radiography performed after chest tube removal following cardiac surgery is necessary only if the patient has respiratory or hemodynamic changes or if there are problems with the technical aspect of chest tube removal. Following this guideline in our patient population could have eliminated 86.3% of radiographs without missing any clinically significant pneumothoraces.