1992 Volume 6 Issue 5 Pages 536-542
From January 1, 1981 to June 30, 1991, 238 patients were admitted to our hospital with spontaneous pneumothorax, 26 of them with bilateral pneumothorax. The age range was 15-76 years (average 30.3); all these patients were male. Of the 26 patients, 6 had bilateral synchronous pneumothorax and 20 had metachronous pneumothorax. The incidence of bilateral synchronous pneumothorax was 2.5% and that of metachronous pneumothorax was 8.4%. The age range of those with synchronous pneumothorax was 15-66 years (average 32) at onset, and 5 of the 6 had concomitant diseases, such as bronchial asthma. The interval between the first and the synchronous contralateral pneumothorax was 1-48 months (average 17.6). The age range of those with bilateral metachronous pneumothorax was 15-76 years (average 26.9). Of the 20 with metachronous pneumothorax, 8 were in their teens and 7 in their twenties. The interval between the first and the contralateral pneumothorax was 0.7-204 months (average 32.2). The interval for those in their teens was 0.7-37 months (average 10.6). Of the 26 cases, 17 were treated with a one-stage operation through a bilateral axillary incision, one was treated with a one-stage operation through a median sternotomy and 5 were treated with a two-stage operation through a bilateral posterolateral incision. We conclude that a one-stage operation through a bilateral axillary incision is indicated for unilateral spontaneus pneumothorax in teen-aged patients.
