Spontaneous Pneumothorax

Pneumothorax is classified as spontaneous (not caused by trauma or any obvious precipitating factor), traumatic, or iatrogenic (Table 1). Primary spontaneous pneumothorax occurs in persons without clinically apparent lung disease; secondary spontaneous pneumothorax is a complication of preexisting lung disease. Iatrogenic pneumothorax results from a complication of a diagnostic or therapeutic intervention. Traumatic pneumothorax is caused by penetrating or blunt trauma to the chest, with air entering the pleural space directly through the chest wall; visceral pleural penetration; or alveolar rupture due to sudden compression of the chest. In this review we focus on spontaneous pneumothorax.Primary Spontaneous PneumothoraxEpidemiology . . .