Abstract

GUERRA, Sónia Silva  and  SILVA, João Paulo. A Severe Case of Pneumomediastinum. Acta Radiol Port [online]. 2020, vol.32, n.3, pp.29-30.  Epub July 14, 2021. ISSN 2183-1351.  https://doi.org/10.25748/arp.20430.

Pneumomediastinum is defined by the presence of air in the mediastinum. It can be spontaneous or secondary to several conditions as trauma, anatomic airway anomalies, respiratory infections, bronchiectasis or exacerbation of asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or interstitial lung disease (ILD). We present a case of the 86-year-old male admitted to the hospital due to pneumonia, who developed an exuberant pneumomediastinum, with cervical and thoracic subcutaneous emphysema and bilateral pneumothorax. He had a previous chest computed tomography (CT) scan revealing fibrosing ILD, unknown before. A new chest-CT scan revealed features of ILD exacerbation. We observed rapid clinic deterioration, with circulatory shock, with progressive deterioration, leading to death.

Keywords : Pneumomediastinum; Subcutaneous emphysema; Interstitial lung disease..

        · abstract in Portuguese     · text in English     · English ( pdf )