Treating pneumothorax . . . and other stories
BMJ 2020; 369 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m1325 (Published 09 April 2020) Cite this as: BMJ 2020;369:m1325
Spontaneous pneumothorax
A bayesian network meta-analysis tries to identify the safest and most effective treatment to offer someone who presents with a symptomatic non-tension spontaneous pneumothorax. It compared narrow and wide bore chest tubes against each other and both types of tube against needle aspiration. In terms of efficacy there was little to choose between them. Fine bore tube had the highest ranking for immediate success. Needle aspiration scored top for safety. Complications were more frequent with large-bore chest tubes (Ann Emerg Med doi:10.1016/j.annemergmed.2020.01.009). Unfortunately, no one thought to ask patients which they preferred. …
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