Simultaneous bilateral spontaneous pneumothorax with pleural window communicating with bilateral pleural spaces

Abstract

A pleural window communicating between bilateral pleural cavities is a serious condition in patients with pneumothorax, allowing air to leak from the affected lung into the contralateral pleural cavity and resulting in bilateral spontaneous pneumothorax. We treated a patient with a history of right-sided bullectomy for simultaneous bilateral spontaneous pneumothorax that subsequently recurred. A pleural window (1 cm long) was detected in the mid-mediastinum, and direct suture closure with localized pleural abrasion using argon beam coagulation on the circumference of the lesion was performed at video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery.