PNEUMOTHORAX encyclopedia topics

PNEUMOTHORAX - 3 reference results

pneumothorax, collapse of a lung with escape of air into the pleural cavity between the lung and the chest wall. The cause may be traumatic (e.g., gunshot or stab wound), spontaneous (rupture due to disease or localized weakness of the lung lining), or environmental (extreme change in atmospheric pressure). The only symptom may be a sudden pain in the chest. Physical and radiological examination reveals characteristic signs of lung collapse. Simple pneumothorax of only one lung generally requires only rest; the break in the pleura usually heals quickly after collapse of the lung has taken place. In tension pneumothorax (where there is high intrapleural pressure), or if both lungs are collapsed, it is mandatory to remove the air from the pleural cavity immediately. An artificial pneumothorax is one deliberately induced, as in the treatment of tuberculosis of the lung before modern drugs became available, or in the diagnosis of lung disease.

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pneumothorax

Condition in which air accumulates in the pleural sac, causing it to expand and thus compress the underlying lung, which may then collapse. (The pleural sac is a cavity formed by the two pleural membranes that line the thoracic cavity and cover the lungs.) Traumatic pneumothorax is the accumulation of air caused by penetrating wounds (knife stabbing, gunshot) or other injuries to the chest wall, after which air is sucked through the opening and into the pleural sac. Spontaneous pneumothorax is the passage of air into the pleural sac from an abnormal connection created between the pleura and the bronchial system as a result of tuberculosis or some other lung disease. The symptoms of spontaneous pneumothorax are a sharp pain in one side of the chest and shortness of breath.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.