Pneumothorax: A Rare Entity During Pregnancy

• Published in: Turkish Thoracic Journal Vol. 20; no. 3; pp. 206 - 208
• Main Authors: Kavurmacı, Önder, Akçam, Tevfik İlker, Kavurmacı, Seda Akgün, Turhan, Kutsal, Çağırıcı, Ufuk
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Turkey Aves Yayincilik Ltd. STI 01-07-2019; Turkish Thoracic Society
• Subjects: Blood pressure; Case Report; Family medical history; Fetuses; Gynecology; Health sciences; Heart; Obstetrics; Pain; Patients; Physiology; Pregnancy; Thoracic surgery; Thorax; Tomography; Tuberculosis; Ultrasonic imaging; X-rays
• ISSN: 2149-2530; 2148-7197; 2149-2530; 2979-9139
• DOI: 10.5152/TurkThoracJ.2018.18154

Pneumothorax is a rarely seen condition during pregnancy, when changes in the respiratory physiology can sensitize the mother and fetus to the signs of hypoxia. Symptoms of pneumothorax, such as dyspnea, tachypnea, and chest pain, can also be attributed to pregnancy and complications with pregnancy and this can lead to misdiagnoses. The limitations in the use of diagnostic tests, such as chest X-ray and computed tomography, make treatment more difficult. Here, we report of two cases admitted to our hospital due to spontaneous pneumothorax during pregnancy. The diagnosis of pneumothorax was made based on a thorax ultrasonography in both patients, whereas a chest X-ray was used in the follow-up period, without the need for a thorax tomography. While one patient was treated via a tube thoracostomy, the other was treated via video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery.