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Clinics and Programs

The Ottawa Hospital Division of Thoracic Surgery currently maintains seven specialty programs and clinical services in close collaboration with other medical teams. These include:

Thoracic Oncology Program

In the late '70s, The Thoracic Surgery Division established a multidisciplinary team approach for efficient diagnosis and treatment of tumours of the lung, oesophagus, mediastinum, pleura and chest wall. The multidisciplinary team is well-organized and consists of thoracic surgeons, chest radiologists, thoracic oncologists, respiratory physicians, thoracic nurses, and thoracic anaesthetists. There is a strong clinical and academic collaboration between The Ottawa Hospital Thoracic Oncology Program and Cancer Care Ontario. The aim of this program is to look after the clinical care of these patients in a well-organized, high-quality, and cost-effective manner.

Benign Oesophageal Diseases

The Division of Thoracic Surgery established an Oesophageal Function Laboratory in 1990 for objective functional assessment of benign disorders of the oesophagus. This much-needed service was considered to be essential for appropriate patient care. Today, approximately 500 patients per year are seen in the Laboratory. The Division of Thoracic Surgery provides a high-quality surgical treatment for these benign disorders. Telephone: 613-737-8899 ext. 74036.

Surgical Treatment of Pulmonary Emphysema

A multidisciplinary team of thoracic surgeons, respiratory physicians, thoracic anaesthetists, rehabilitation medicine professionals, and physiotherapists was established in 1995 for assessment and selection of patients with pulmonary emphysema who would best benefit from the lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS).

Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery (VATS)

VATS is for the treatment of psychologically disabling excessive sweating in the arms, recurrent spontaneous pneumothoraces, and resection of posterior mediastinal tumours in selected patients.

Surgical Treatment of Generalized Myasthemia Gravis by Thymectomy (Transcervical Or Transsternal)

These patients are referred by neurologists and undergo proper pre-operative preparation. The post-operative care is maintained by the neurologists.

Musculoskeletal Clinic for Thoracic Outlet Syndrome

The Division of Thoracic Surgery continues to provide surgical treatment in selected cases of thoracic outlet syndrome. The aim in the future is to establish a clinic consisting of a multidisciplinary team of thoracic surgeons, vascular surgeons, neurologists, physiotherapists and chronic pain service professionals  in order to provide the best possible care.

Diagnostic And Therapeutic Interventional Thoracic Radiology

The Department of Radiological Sciences has established a full range of diagnostic and therapeutic interventional radiological procedures for the efficient care of patients with chest diseases.