Pneumothorax

A pneumothorax is a build-up of air in the pleural space. This causes part or all of your lung to collapse.

• A pneumothorax happens when a weak area of your lung tears or your lung is injured so that air escapes into your chest

• You may have shortness of breath and chest pain

• Doctors can see a pneumothorax on chest x-ray or ultrasound

• Doctors usually place a tube in your chest to drain the air

A pneumothorax is caused by a tear or injury to the membrane around your lung. This can happen from:

• Weakening in a small area of your lung (this most often happens in tall men under age 40 who smoke)

• A long-term lung problem such as COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), cystic fibrosis, asthma, or tuberculosis

• Chest injury or surgery (traumatic pneumothorax)

• Pressure damage from a breathing machine

Symptoms of a pneumothorax depend on how much air enters the pleural space and how much of your lung collapses. Symptoms may happen suddenly or slowly. You may have:

• Shortness of breath

• Chest pain

• Sometimes, pain in your shoulder

• If a large pneumothorax happens suddenly, sometimes shock and cardiac arrest

Usually, your body reabsorbs the air, and the pneumothorax goes away over 2 to 4 weeks.

To tell if you have a pneumothorax, doctors listen to your breathing with a stethoscope. They’ll also do a chest x-ray or ultrasound.

Treatment depends on how large your pneumothorax is.

If there's only a small pneumothorax, doctors may:

• Wait to see if the air goes away on its own

For a larger pneumothorax, or if you're having trouble breathing, doctors will:

• Give you oxygen

• Place a small plastic tube in your chest (chest tube) to remove the air

Usually the chest tube is connected to a vacuum device to pull the air out. You'll have the chest tube for a couple days until your lung heals.