Abstract

The management of spontaneous pneumothorax in the non-ventilated patient is determined by whether or not there is marked underlying lung pathology (secondary) or not (primary). Primary pneumothorax is generally managed initially by simple tube drainage, although the success of operative approaches suggests that earlier intervention may be beneficial. In contrast, patients with severe underlying lung disease have both increased operative risk, as well as failure of both operative and non-operative management. In either setting, early surgical consultation is ideal and particularly in the setting of secondary pneumothorax a multi-modality approach is optimal.

Keywords: Pleurodesis, pneumothorax, secondary, spontaneous, thoracoscopy, VATS, epidemiology, pathophysiology, pleural space, emphysema.