CT features associated with contralateral recurrence of spontaneous pneumothorax

Abstract Introduction Spontaneous pneumothorax recurs in 30–54% of patients without surgery. Identifying individuals likely to suffer a recurrence, who might benefit from pre-emptive surgery, is challenging. Previous meta-analysis suggested a relationship between contralateral recurrence and specific CT findings. Methods We analysed CT images and recurrence rates of 243 patients seen by our tertiary referral pneumothorax service. Results We validated the meta-analysis observation that contralateral lung cysts are associated with a higher risk of contralateral recurrence in younger individuals. Furthermore, we observed that the size of contralateral cysts to be associated with increased contralateral recurrence in younger patients. Conclusion The detection of contralateral lung cysts might therefore help identify younger patients more likely to benefit from pre-emptive surgery.