Özet:

OBJECTIVE: Spontaneous pneumomediastinum (SPM) is a rare disease caused by the accumulation of air in the mediastinum through the tracheobronchial tree neighborhood due to alveolar rupture, which occurs spontaneously or with the effect of precipitating factors. The aim of this study is to report our experience in the diagnosis and treatment of SPM. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Seventeen patients treated with the diagnosis of SPM in a 3.5 year period were included in the study retrospectively. Age, gender, smoking, co-morbid disease status, clinical presentations, radiological imaging, treatment processes, and recurrence status were analyzed. Secondary pneumomediastinum cases were not included in the study. RESULTS: Fourteen of the patients were male, and three were female. The mean age was 19.2 ±2.8, and the mean Body Mass Index (BMI) was 18.5 ±6.3 kg/m2. The precipitating factor for SPM was found in 13 (76.5%) cases. There was a diagnosis of asthma in 4 (23.5%) cases. 9 (52.9%) cases were smokers. The most common symptom was chest pain, with 14 cases (82.4%). Subcutaneous emphysema was present in 5 (29.4%) and Hamman's sign in 2 (11.8%) cases, and the Macklin effect was detected in 3 (17.6%) cases in thorax tomography. The mean hospital stay of the cases was 4.5 ±2 days. No interventional procedures were performed, such as fiberoptic bronchoscopy, upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, pretracheal fasciotomy, or mediastinal drainage catheterization. When the antibiotic therapy rates were examined, it was seen that 13 (76.5%) cases were not given antibiotics, and no advanced complications such as mediastinitis developed in any case. CONCLUSIONS: SPM is a benign condition presenting with chest pain and dyspnea. Computed tomography is the gold standard in diagnosis, and SPM is usually treated conservatively. Although recurrence is rare, it is vital to determine the presence of an underlying secondary cause at the time of initial diagnosis.

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