https://doi.org/10.4081/monaldi.2021.1608
Pneumothorax and pneumomediastinum in COVID-19 acute respiratory distress syndrome
Submitted: September 15, 2020
Accepted: March 6, 2021
Published: April 16, 2021
Accepted: March 6, 2021
Abstract Views: 3229
PDF: 1455
VIDEO: 189
VIDEO: 189
Publisher's note
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
Authors
COVID-19 has involved numerous countries across the globe and the disease burden, susceptible age group; mortality rate has been variable depending on the demographical profile, economic status, and health care infrastructure. In the current clinical environment, COVID-19 is one of the most important clinical differential diagnoses in patients presenting with respiratory symptoms. The optimal mechanical ventilation strategy for these patients has been a constant topic of discussion and very importantly so, since a great majority of these patients require invasive mechanical ventilation and often for an extended period of time. In this report we highlight our experience with a COVID-19 patient who most likely suffered barotrauma either as a result of traumatic endotracheal intubation or primarily due to COVID-19 itself. We also aim to highlight the current literature available to suggest the management strategy for these patients for a favorable outcome. The cases described are diverse in terms of age variance and other comorbidities. According to the literature, certain patients, with COVID-19 disease and spontaneous pneumothorax were noted to be managed conservatively and oxygen supplementation with nasal cannula sufficed. Decision regarding need and escalation to invasive mechanical ventilation should be taken early in the disease to avoid complications such as patient self-inflicted lung injury (P-SILI) and barotrauma sequelae such as pneumothorax and pneumomediastinum Recent systematic review further supports the fact that the use of non-invasive ventilation (NIV) in certain patients with COVID-19 pneumonia may give a false sense of security and clinical stabilization but has no overall benefit to avoid intubation. While invasive mechanical ventilation may be associated with higher rates of barotrauma, this should not mean that intubation and invasive mechanical ventilation should be delayed. This becomes an important consideration when non-intensivists or personnel with less experience provide care for this vulnerable patient population who may rely too heavily on NIV to avoid intubation and mechanical ventilation.
Sahu KK, Mishra AK, Lal A. Comprehensive update on current outbreak of novel coronavirus infection (2019-nCoV). Ann Transl Med 2020;8:393.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21037/atm.2020.02.92
Sahu KK, Mishra AK, Lal A. COVID-2019: update on epidemiology, disease spread and management. Monaldi Arch Chest Dis 2020;90:1292.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4081/monaldi.2020.1292
Sahu KK, Mishra AK, Lal A. Novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV): Update on 3rd coronavirus outbreak of 21st century. QJM 2020;113:384-6.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/qjmed/hcaa081
Wu Z, McGoogan JM. Characteristics of and Important lessons from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in China: Summary of a report of 72 314 cases from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. JAMA 2020;323:1239-42.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.2648
Soy M, Keser G, Atagündüz P, et al. Cytokine storm in COVID-19: pathogenesis and overview of anti-inflammatory agents used in treatment. Clin Rheumatol 2020:39:2085-94.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-020-05190-5
Lal A, Mishra AK, Sahu KK. CT chest findings in coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). J Formos Med Assoc 2020;119:100-1.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfma.2020.03.010
Martinelli AW, Ingle T, Newman J, et al. COVID-19 and pneumothorax: A multicentre retrospective case series. Eur Respir J 2020;56:2002697.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1183/13993003.02697-2020
Lal A, Mishra AK, John K, et al. Corticosteroids and rehabilitation in COVID-19 survivors. J Formos Med Assoc Online ahead of print 2020;S0929-6646(20)30605-7.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfma.2020.12.005
Lal A, Mishra AK, Sahu KK. Prevention of early ventilator-associated pneumonia. N Engl J Medic 2020;382:1671-2.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMc2001183
Liu K, Zeng Y, Xie P, et al. COVID-19 with cystic features on computed tomography: a case report. Medicine (Baltimore) 2020;99:e20175.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1097/MD.0000000000020175
Bor C, Demirağ K, Uyar M, et al. Recurrent spontaneous pneumothorax during the recovery phase of ARDS due to H1N1 infection. Balkan Med J 2013;30:123-5.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5152/balkanmedj.2012.086
Gattinoni L, Caironi P, Pelosi P, et al. What has computed tomography taught us about the acute respiratory distress syndrome? Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2001;164:1701-11.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1164/ajrccm.164.9.2103121
Joynt GM, Antonio GE, Lam P, et al. Late-stage adult respiratory distress syndrome caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome: abnormal findings at thin-section CT. Radiology 2004;230:339-46.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1148/radiol.2303030894
Chen N, Zhou M, Dong X, et al. Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of 99 cases of 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan, China: a descriptive study. Lancet 2020;395:507-13.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30211-7
Sun R, Liu H, Wang X. Mediastinal emphysema, giant bulla, and pneumothorax developed during the course of COVID-19 pneumonia. Korean J Radiol 2020;21:541-4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3348/kjr.2020.0180
Cheng ZJ, Shan J. 2019 Novel coronavirus: where we are and what we know. Infection 2020;48:155-63.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s15010-020-01401-y
Salehi S, Abedi A, Balakrishnan S, et al. Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): A systematic review of imaging findings in 919 patients. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2020;215:87-93.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2214/AJR.20.23034
Gattinoni L, Coppola S, Cressoni M, et al. COVID-19 does not lead to a “typical” acute respiratory distress syndrome. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2020;201:1299-300.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1164/rccm.202003-0817LE
Gattinoni L, Chiumello D, Caironi P, et al. COVID-19 pneumonia: different respiratory treatments for different phenotypes? Intensive Care Med 2020;46:1099-102.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00134-020-06033-2
Schünemann HJ, Khabsa J, Solo K, et al. Ventilation techniques and risk for transmission of coronavirus disease, including COVID-19: A living systematic review of multiple streams of evidence. Ann Intern Med 2020;173:204-16.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7326/M20-2306
Arulkumaran N, Brealey D, Howell D, et al. Use of non-invasive ventilation for patients with COVID-19: a cause for concern? Lancet Respir Med 2020;8:e45.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S2213-2600(20)30181-8
Patel BK, Kress JP, Hall JB. Alternatives to Invasive ventilation in the COVID-19 pandemic. JAMA 2020;324:43-4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.9611
Kangelaris KN, Ware LB, Wang CY, et al. Timing of intubation and clinical outcomes in adults with acute respiratory distress syndrome. Critical Care Med 2016;44:120-9.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1097/CCM.0000000000001359
Kwon AH, Slocum AH Jr., Varelmann D, et al. Rapidly scalable mechanical ventilator for the COVID-19 pandemic. Intensive Care Med 2020;46:1642-4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00134-020-06113-3
Brochard L, Slutsky A, Pesenti A. Mechanical ventilation to minimize progression of lung injury in acute respiratory failure. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2016;195:438-42.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1164/rccm.201605-1081CP
Duan J, Han X, Bai L, et al. Assessment of heart rate, acidosis, consciousness, oxygenation, and respiratory rate to predict noninvasive ventilation failure in hypoxemic patients. Intensive Care Med 2017;43:192-9.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00134-016-4601-3
Roca O, Messika J, Caralt B, et al. Predicting success of high-flow nasal cannula in pneumonia patients with hypoxemic respiratory failure: The utility of the ROX index. J Crit Care 2016;35:200-5.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcrc.2016.05.022
López Vega JM, Parra Gordo ML, Diez Tascón A, et al. Pneumomediastinum and spontaneous pneumothorax as an extrapulmonary complication of COVID-19 disease. Emerg Radiol 2020;27:727-30.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10140-020-01806-0
McGuinness G, Zhan C, Rosenberg N, et al. High incidence of barotrauma in patients with COVID-19 Infection on invasive mechanical ventilation. Radiology 2020;297:e252-62.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1148/radiol.2020202352
de Durante G, del Turco M, Rustichini L, et al. ARDSNet lower tidal volume ventilatory strategy may generate intrinsic positive end-expiratory pressure in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome. Am J Respir Critl Care Med 2002;165:1271-4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1164/rccm.2105050
Yang X, Yu Y, Xu J, et al. Clinical course and outcomes of critically ill patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia in Wuhan, China: a single-centered, retrospective, observational study. Lancet Respir Med 2020;8:475-81.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S2213-2600(20)30079-5
Prokakis C, Koletsis EN, Dedeilias P, et al. Airway trauma: a review on epidemiology, mechanisms of injury, diagnosis and treatment. J Cardiothorac Surg 2014;9:117.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1749-8090-9-117
Lal A, Akhtar J, Jindal V, et al. Rare cause of respiratory failure: A twist in the tale. Ann Am Thorac Soc 2018;15:880-3.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1513/AnnalsATS.201802-122CC
Lal A, Akhtar J, Khan MS, et al. Primary endobronchial amyloidosis: A rare case of endobronchial tumor. Respir Med Case Rep 2018;23:163-6.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rmcr.2018.02.007
Lal A, Akhtar J, Pinto S, et al. Recurrent pulmonary embolism and hypersensitivity pneumonitis secondary to aspergillus, in a compost plant worker: Case report and review of literature. Lung 2018;196:553-60.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00408-018-0142-6
Lal A, Davis MJ, Akhtar J, et al. Serious cover-up: Hodgkin's lymphoma masked by organizing pneumonia. Am J Med 2018;131:1174-7.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2018.03.019
Lal A, Mishra AK, Sahu KK, et al. The return of Koch's: Ineffective treatment or re-infection. Enferm Infecc Microbiol Clin 2020;38:144-5.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eimc.2019.06.001
Lal A, Nabzdyk C, Ramakrishna H, et al. Consider heightened awareness of propofol infusion syndrome after extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) decannulation. J Cardiothorac Vasc Anesth 2020;34:2174-7.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1053/j.jvca.2019.12.019
Lal A, Mishra AK, Sahu KK, et al. Spontaneous pneumomediastinum: Rare complication of tracheomalacia. Arch Bronconeumol 2020;56:185-6.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arbres.2019.09.017
Seelhammer TG, Plack D, Lal A, Nabzdyk CGS. COVID-19 and ECMO: An unhappy marriage of endothelial dysfunction and hemostatic derangements. J Cardiothorac Vasc Anesth 2020;34:3193-6.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1053/j.jvca.2020.09.132
Bartlett RH, Ogino MT, Brodie D, et al. Initial ELSO guidance document: ECMO for COVID-19 patients with severe cardiopulmonary failure. ASAIO J 2020;66:472-4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1097/MAT.0000000000001173
Lal A, Pena ED, Sarcilla DJ, et al. Ideal length of oral endotracheal tube for critically ill intubated patients in an Asian population: Comparison to current western standards. Cureus 2018;10:e3590.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.3590
Lal A, Mishra AK, Sahu KK. Vitamin E acetate and e-cigarette or vaping product-associated lung injury (EVALI): An update. Am J Med 2020;133:e204.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2019.11.005
Aydın S, Öz G, Dumanlı A, et al. A case of spontaneous pneumothorax in Covid-19 pneumonia. J Surg Res 2020;3:096-101.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.26502/jsr.10020060
Flower L, Carter J-PL, Rosales Lopez J, et al. Tension pneumothorax in a patient with COVID-19. BMJ Case Rep 2020;13:e235861.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/bcr-2020-235861
Hollingshead C, Hanrahan J. Spontaneous pneumothorax following COVID-19 pneumonia. IDCases 2020;21:e00868.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.idcr.2020.e00868
Spiro JE, Sisovic S, Ockert B, et al. Secondary tension pneumothorax in a COVID-19 pneumonia patient: a case report. Infection 2020;48:941-4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s15010-020-01457-w
Romano N, Fischetti A, Melani EF. Pneumomediastinum related to Covid-19 pneumonia. Am J Med Sci 2020;360:e19-e20.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjms.2020.06.003
Alhakeem A, Khan MM, Al Soub H, et al. Case Report: COVID-19–associated bilateral spontaneous pneumothorax - A literature review. Am J Trop Med Hyg 2020;103:1162-5.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.20-0680
Mallick T, Dinesh A, Engdahl R, Sabado M. COVID-19 complicated by spontaneous pneumothorax. Cureus 2020;12:e9104.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.9104
Rachidi SA, Motiaa Y. Spontaneous pneumothorax associated with COVID-19. Glob J Medical Clin Case Rep 2020;7:043.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17352/2455-5282.000094
Ucpinar BA, Sahin C, Yanc U. Spontaneous pneumothorax and subcutaneous emphysema in COVID-19 patient: Case report. J Infect Public Health 2020;13:887-9.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiph.2020.05.012
How to Cite
Lal, Amos, Ajay Kumar Mishra, Jamal Akhtar, and Christoph Nabzdyk. 2021. “Pneumothorax and Pneumomediastinum in COVID-19 Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome”. Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease 91 (2). https://doi.org/10.4081/monaldi.2021.1608.
Copyright (c) 2021 The Author(s)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
PAGEPress has chosen to apply the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0) to all manuscripts to be published.
Similar Articles
- Sryma PB, Saurabh Mittal, Karan Madan, Anant Mohan, Pawan Tiwari, Vijay Hadda, Ravindra Mohan Pandey, Randeep Guleria, Awake prone positioning in non-intubated patients for the management of hypoxemia in COVID-19: A systematic review and meta-analysis , Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease: Vol. 91 No. 2 (2021)
- Laura Crespi, Monica Bosco, Naika Scalabrino, Massimo Baravelli, Anna Picozzi, Andrea Rossi, Melania Romano, Daniela Imperiale, Silvana Borghi, Elisabetta Brunello, Claudio Anzà , Intensive physiotherapic respiratory care in critically ill patients with tracheostomy after cardiac surgery , Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease: Vol. 72 No. 3 (2009): Cardiac series
- Cleante Scarduelli, Francesco Inglese, Massimiliano Beccaria, Fabio Spreafico, Martina Garuti, Antonietta Pecoriello, Giulia Cervi, Graziana Greco, Sara Scarduelli, Giuseppe Lucchini, Giuseppe De Donno, Claudio Borghi, Pulmonary embolism in patients with severe COVID-19 treated with intermediate- to full-dose enoxaparin: A retrospective study , Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease: Vol. 91 No. 3 (2021)
- B. Chandrasoma, D. Balfe, T. Naik, A. Elsayegh, M. Lewis, Z. Mosenifar, Pulmonary function in patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis at disease onset , Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease: Vol. 77 No. 3-4 (2012): Pulmonary series
- P. Malhotra, R. Agarwal, D. Gupta, A.N. Aggarwal, Successful management of ARDS with bronchopleural fistula secondary to miliary tuberculosis using a conventional ventilator , Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease: Vol. 63 No. 3 (2005): Pulmonary series
- Stefano Fumagalli, Giulia Pelagalli, Marta Migliorini, Serena Boni, Francesca Nigro, Irene Marozzi, Simone Pupo, Niccolò Marchionni, The complex interaction between atrial fibrillation and heart failure in elderly patients , Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease: Vol. 89 No. 2 (2019)
- Ganesh Narwade, Manu Madan, Rohit Kumar, Pranav Ish, AJ Mahendran, Rajnish Kaushik, Nitesh Gupta, Clinical characteristics of non-sleepy obstructive sleep apnea patients: a study in a tertiary care sleep clinic in India , Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease: Early Access
- M. Vitacca, L. Bianchi, A. Bazza, E.M. Clini, Advanced COPD patients under Home Mechanical Ventilation and/or Long Term Oxygen Therapy: Italian Healthcare Costs , Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease: Vol. 75 No. 4 (2011): Pulmonary series
- A. Chroneou, N. Zias, B.S. Tronic, A.V. Gonzalez, J.F. Beamis Jr., A case of uncomplicated pulmonary alveolar proteinosis evolving to pulmonary fibrosis , Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease: Vol. 67 No. 4 (2007): Pulmonary series
- Francesca Cesari, Anna Maria Gori, Ilaria Romagnuolo, Rosanna Abbate, Endothelial progenitor cells and vascular health: effects of lifestyle’s modifications , Monaldi Archives for Chest Disease: Vol. 78 No. 2 (2012): Cardiac series
<< < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 > >>
You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.
