Risk factors and early warning scoring system for chronic postsurgical pain following video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery in elderly lung cancer patients: a retrospective cohort study.

Elderly lung cancer patients undergoing VATS face a 50% risk of developing chronic postsurgical pain, with a new scoring system achieving an AUC of 0.847 for prediction.

• Why it matters: Chronic postsurgical pain significantly impairs quality of life and recovery in elderly patients, yet validated risk stratification tools tailored to this group are lacking, hindering targeted prevention.
• What they did: A retrospective cohort of 200 elderly VATS patients was analyzed to identify seven independent risk factors for CPSP, leading to the development of a 0-17 point early warning scoring system.
• The result: The scoring system effectively stratifies risk with high sensitivity and specificity, enabling preoperative identification of high-risk patients to guide preventive strategies and improve long-term outcomes.