The Solitary Pulmonary Nodule

(1)A study of 217 resected asymptomatic solitary pulmonary nodules has been presented.(2)Thirty-four per cent of all cases and 53 per cent of patients 50 years of age or older had primary carcinomatous nodules of the lung. These figures are comparable to the Veterans Administration-Armed Forces figures of 31 per cent and 51 per cent respectively.(3)In spite of meticulous diagnostic methods, positive preoperative diagnosis is seldom made in the asymptomatic solitary pulmonary nodule.(4)Early eploratory thoracotomy is strongly urged for the undiagnosed asymptomatic pulmonary nodule.