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Pneumothorax
What department should I go to for pneumothorax?
What department is pneumothorax treated in? For pneumothorax, we commonly see patients first in the emergency department, as the onset of pneumothorax is generally very sudden and the condition can be quite severe. The patient may suddenly experience difficulty breathing, and in most cases, this breathing difficulty is severe. Therefore, patients typically start by seeing the emergency internal medicine department. The doctors there will assess the patient’s condition and will consult with thoracic and cardiovascular surgery and respiratory medicine. If a closed thoracic drainage tube is needed, our surgeons will immediately perform the drainage. If the patient can be treated conservatively, they are usually then transferred to either respiratory medicine or thoracic and cardiovascular surgery for further treatment.
Pneumothorax pleurodesis: what are the advantages and disadvantages?
Pleurodesis for pneumothorax involves injecting a sclerosant into the pleural cavity to induce a sterile inflammation, causing adhesion of the parietal and visceral pleurae, thereby eliminating the pleural space. This can be used to treat pneumothorax. The benefits include a high success rate, simple operation, and low recurrence rate. The downside is that there can be adverse reactions, the most common being chest pain and fever; severe cases may cause acute respiratory distress syndrome. Therefore, extra care is needed during the pleurodesis procedure.
What are the main signs of pneumothorax?
If it is a small amount of pneumothorax, the physical signs are generally not obvious, especially when patients with emphysema develop pneumothorax, it is difficult to detect any signs. However, when a larger amount of pneumothorax occurs, inspection will reveal that the affected side of the chest is bulging and respiratory movements are reduced. Upon palpation, the trachea usually shifts towards the healthy side, tactile fremitus on the affected side is reduced, percussion results in hyperresonance or tympany, and auscultation shows reduced breath sounds, which can disappear in severe cases.