%0 Multicenter Study
%T Microwave ablation with a blunt-tip antenna for pulmonary ground-glass nodules: a retrospective, multicenter, case-control study.
%A Wei Z
%A Chi J
%A Cao P
%A Jin Y
%A Li X
%A Ye X
%J Radiol Med
%V 128
%N 9
%D 2023 Sep 17
%M 37458905
%F 6.313
%R 10.1007/s11547-023-01672-z
%X <B>OBJECTIVE: </B>A previous small-sample study verified that a blunt-tip antenna reduced hemorrhage during microwave ablation. We conducted this large-sample, multicenter, case-control study to further verify the efficacy and safety of microwave ablation with a blunt-tip antenna for ground-glass nodules.<BR><B>METHODS: </B>Patients with pulmonary ground-glass nodules were treated with either a sharp-tip (Group A) or blunt-tip antenna (Group B). A total of 147 and 150 patients were retrospectively allocated to Groups A and Group B, respectively. Group A patients underwent 151 procedures, and Group B patients underwent 153 procedures. We assessed the technical success, technique efficacy, and complications.<BR><B>RESULTS: </B>Technical success and overall technique efficacy were achieved in all patients (100%). Major complications of pneumothorax were more commonly observed in Group A than in Group B (19.7% vs. 2.0%, p < 0.001). Minor complications, such as intrapulmonary hemorrhage (2.0% vs. 9.5%, p = 0.005) and hemothorax (0.0% vs. 2.7%, p = 0.049), occurred less frequently in Group B compared to Group A.<BR><B>CONCLUSIONS: </B>In the treatment of ground-glass nodules, microwave ablation with a blunt-tip antenna had equal efficacy compared to microwave ablation with a sharp-tip antenna but had a decreased number of hemorrhage and hemothorax complications.