Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2015 Mar;3(4):54.
doi: 10.3978/j.issn.2305-5839.2015.03.25.

Heimlich valve and pneumothorax

Apostolos Gogakos  1 , Nikolaos Barbetakis  1 , George Lazaridis  1 , Antonis Papaiwannou  1 , Anastasia Karavergou  1 , Sofia Lampaki  1 , Sofia Baka  1 , Ioannis Mpoukovinas  1 , Vasilis Karavasilis  1 , Ioannis Kioumis  1 , Georgia Pitsiou  1 , Nikolaos Katsikogiannis  1 , Kosmas Tsakiridis  1 , Aggeliki Rapti  1 , Georgia Trakada  1 , Athanasios Zissimopoulos  1 , Katerina Tsirgogianni  1 , Konstantinos Zarogoulidis  1 , Paul Zarogoulidis  1
Affiliations
Review

Heimlich valve and pneumothorax

Apostolos Gogakos et al. Ann Transl Med. 2015 Mar.

Abstract

The Heimlich valve is a small one-way valve used for chest drainage that empties into a flexible collection device and prevents return of gases or fluids into the pleural space. The Heimlich valve is less than 13 cm (5 inches) long and facilitates patient ambulation. Currently there are several systems in the market. It can be used in many patients instead of a traditional water seal drainage system. The Heimlich chest drainage valve was developed so that the process of draining the pleural cavity could be accomplished in a safe, relatively simple, and efficient manner. This valve system has replaced the cumbersome underwater drainage bottle system. Moreover; the Heimlich valve system connects to chest tubing and allows fluid and air to pass in one direction only. This system functions in any position, and it does not ever need to be clamped, a regulated suction can be attached to it if necessary. The valve drains into a plastic bag that can be held at any level, allowing the patient undergoing chest drainage to be ambulatory simply by carrying the bag. In the current mini review we will present the Heimlich valve system and method of insertion.

Keywords: Heimlich valve; Pneumothorax; VATS.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A Heimlich flutter valve.
Figure 2
Figure 2
A Heimlich flutter valve connected to the chest drainage tube at the left chest wall.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Bernstein A, Waqaruddin M, Shah M.Management of spontaneous pneumothorax using a Heimlich flutter valve. Thorax 1973;28:386-9. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Edenborough FP, Hussain I, Stableforth DE. Use of a Heimlich flutter valve for pneumothorax in cystic fibrosis. Thorax 1994;49:1178-9. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Fox B.Use of the Heimlich flutter valve for chest drainage in battle casualties. Aust N Z J Surg 1967;37:145-7. - PubMed
    1. Heimlich HJ. Heimlich valve for chest drainage. Med Instrum 1983;17:29-31. - PubMed
    1. Chan KY, Fikri-Abdullah M, Sajjad M, et al. Outpatient treatment of spontaneous pneumothorax using an improved pocket sized Heimlich valve. Med J Malaysia 2003;58:597-9. - PubMed