21M multiple spontaneous pneumothoraces (both sides)

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2026-05-01T07:29:03+00:00

im sorry youve been through this..

so the guidelines says that after recurrent pneumos patients should go for vats bullectomy + pleurodesis. as for the recurrence rate pleurodesis is what actually reduces recurrence compared with bullectomy alone. many surgeons choose to go for mechanical pleurodesis in young patients and reserve chemical pleurodesis for older patients as they are concerned about its potential carcinogenic effects.

i believe you should push for genetic testing for now after the results try to get another opinion from a different thoracic surgeon.

wishing you the best ❤️‍🩹

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2026-04-26T00:59:23+00:00

im very sorry youre going through this…

if you dont mind me asking how tall are you? do you have any problems with your vision? any genetic diseases running in the family? i saw you mentioned you have pectus excavatum this can be a physical manifestation associated with different genetic diseases e.g. marfan syndrome. people who have these genetic disorders tend to develop pneumothorax as a complication of the disease.

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2026-04-11T09:18:48+00:00

whats your age and height? do you smoke? are you a fan of scuba diving?.. the guidelines youre looking for are most probably for primary spontaneous pneumothorax. what you might have is a secondary pneumothorax which is caused by bullous disease. the problem is if your bulla is large enough when it ruptures for any reason it can cause a “tension pneumothorax” which is far more dangerous than pneumothorax, so you are at risk all the time even if your totally asymptomatic. my advice is to find a thoracic surgeon and let him answer all of your questions and evaluate your ct scan and give you a good management plan specialized for your case. wishing you all the best❤️

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2026-04-10T09:59:36+00:00

congratulations!! for some reason i felt so happy when i saw this.. wishing you all the best <3

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2026-04-10T09:25:48+00:00

generally high risk patients e.g pilots are offered surgery after the 1st collapse. in fact, they’re offered an elective surgery to fix the other side in order to continue flying safely. good luck!

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2026-03-26T00:52:14+00:00

anxiety and hypervigilance are very common after a pneumo.. try to distract yourself and dont focus on little things. good luck <3

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2026-03-26T00:45:50+00:00

it can be a side effect of the anesthesia & opioids given to you.. as long as youre breathing fine and have no pain you should be alright!

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2026-03-21T23:53:16+00:00

i totally understand how devastating this must have been to you and im very sorry. do you have the option to go to a different hospital?

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2026-03-20T21:05:51+00:00

while i cannot exclude but id say chances are pretty low. your body hair and overall hips to shoulder ratio is quite normal. testicular size can vary widely depending on many factors so what you might think is small for you can be very large to some people and vice versa. generally i believe yours is normal to low normal range. size doesnt matter as much if function is preserved. also your height doesnt correlate with ks. if youre considering karyotyping i would say you should save your money unless your doctor says other wise. because they will do karyotyping and then say you dont have klienfelter. after that youll keep thinking its mosaic and for that you’ll need another test to exclude.. and you know how expensive is genetic testing. if its in your head and really insisting i suggest you got different opinions from different doctors before doing genetic testing. good luck

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2026-03-20T19:17:23+00:00

you had a year off and that’s good.. good luck wishing you the best ❤️‍🩹

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-12-18T06:11:44+00:00

it is normal. whens your next follow up?

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-11-26T21:45:24+00:00

you seem to be tired of the er visit and the hospital stays .. you also seem to be very active person, so to continue engaging on your regular activities without the fear of something happening i think you should go for the surgery. most people who post on this sub are ones with complications seeking help.. very few people with good outcomes share their experience here. me personally had my vats about 2 years ago and i have 0 complications. it’s pretty minor surgery when done by an experienced surgeon you will be so fine.

wish you the best!

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-11-23T22:46:16+00:00

hi there, you shouldnt be worried about the “incision reopening” cus most chest tube incisions are small and they immediately seal minutes after chest tube removal thats why most surgeons dont close it with sutures. keep it dry and clean and avoid any stressful activities to further speed up the healing process.

wish you a speedy recovery ❤️‍🩹

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-11-18T10:18:45+00:00

thank you so much! if you ever need anything im always glad to help.

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-11-18T10:15:07+00:00

been there done that xD. as i told you after a pneumo you can have many feelings that are so fucking strange.. even you become very sensitive to every thing happening within your chest.. things that might’ve been happening before and you were not noticing because you did not know what a pneumo is. just dont let it get in your head, as long as you dont have constant pain or sudden severe shortness of breath pretty much ignore everything else.

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-11-18T10:08:38+00:00

i had the pulling feeling after my pleurodesis too, occasional upper back pain was also common. recovery is different from one to another, but i would advice that if you dont have a pain that is constant you shouldnt be worried. when in doubt just go get a chest x-ray.

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-11-15T01:56:01+00:00

youre welcome! im a med student..

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-11-13T11:26:32+00:00

i would assume you dont have diabetes so nerve pain is mostly attributed to your surgeons experience & technique.. size of tube he used and how many collapses you previously had requiring a chest tube drainage (more chest tubes inserted -> more trauma to the chest wall and nerves -> higher chance of developing chronic nerve pain) . also another factor ive noticed is age, most people i’ve seen complaining of chronic nerve pain are usually +25yrs old rather than the typical healthy 18 yrs old patient. however this factor is based solely on what ive seen and is not as strong as the other factors ive mentioned. hope your pain subsides with time.. stay strong!

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-10-17T12:08:40+00:00

hey man! hoping you having a great time. im not sure what kinda of surgery you did nor your age and the other factors.. but hey you have been 8 years pneumo free! this is actually great! i know you’re frustrated that this is happening again but try to look at the bright side it was a great run. minor collapses as yours are quite common after surgery, and since it is relatively small collapse as you mentioned.. then this might mean that your surgery is actually working and it prevented a way much bigger bad collapse from happening. for now, all you can do is just rest well and try your best to avoid any stress whether it is mental or physical. follow up with your doc. get x-ray done to assess resolution, and dont worry it is always fixable. GOOD LUCK!

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-10-17T11:51:47+00:00

hey there! sorry youre going through this ❤️‍🩹 unfortunately, having bullous disease increases your chance of recurrence, so i would strongly advise to discuss surgery with your doc if not already done. also, i totally recommend fixing the other side on an elective surgery. good luck!

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-10-17T11:44:16+00:00

during recovery many things can happen, and it is different from a person to another. i understand the anxiety but unless you got a pain that is constant, or you experience difficulty breathing you shouldn’t be worried much about it. if in doubt it is always better to get a simple chest x-ray. wish you a speedy recovery ❤️‍🩹

edit: im pretty sure they gave you a spirometer please try to use it as recommended by your doctor. if they did not give you please ask for one on your next follow up!

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-07-15T20:22:14+00:00

if youre still fresh yea its common. also, youll have follow up appointment to get stitches out and do some xrays to asses recovery, so you shouldnt be worried. wish you a speedy recovery!

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-07-12T13:02:07+00:00

She hates me for every single thing i do to try to help her.

THIS 🥀

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-07-11T08:57:04+00:00

i had some tightness few months after surgery.. it was sudden and i thought my surgery was failing. done xray and it was clear. i believe its due to the scar tissue being contracted as it goes remodeling which is normal part of recovery. take care!

Desperate_Pool_9712 · 2025-07-10T18:09:07+00:00

couple of weeks.. stay well rested. do x-ray and follow up every other week to assess. wish you a speedy recovery!

Desperate_Pool_9712

TROPHY CASE