UW Program To Take Part In New Surgical Procedure

Thu., Dec. 26, 1996

From Staff And Wire Reports

University of Washington surgeons and lung experts are participating in the first clinical trial of a surgical procedure, a seven-year evaluation of lung volume reduction surgery.

The technique, regarded for some time as a life-saving treatment for emphysema, was covered by Medicare and many private insurers until last year, when questions were raised about its effectiveness.

“After Medicare withdrew its support, some insurance companies did as well,” said Dr. Richard Albert, the university’s chief head of pulmonary and critical care medicine and principal investigator in the school’s part of the study.

The National Institutes of Health and the Health Care Financing Administration is sponsoring an evaluation to determine whether the $30,000 operation does help patients at the university and 17 other centers nationwide.

Emphysema is the fourth-leading cause of death in this country, killing more than 90,000 people a year - 90 percent of them cigarette smokers. About 2 million Americans have emphysema, mostly from smoking.

The ailment progresses as tiny air sacs in the lungs are damaged. As the lungs lose their elasticity and capacity to transfer oxygen, they become hyperinflated, or grossly enlarged.

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