Spontaneous pneumothorax in a single lung transplant recipient-a blessing in disguise: A case report

BACKGROUND End-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD)is one of the common lung diseases referred for lung transplantation.According to the international society of heart and lung transplantation,30%of all lung transplantations are carried out for COPD alone.When compared to bilateral lung transplant,singlelung transplant(SLT)has similar short-term and medium-term results for COPD.For patients with severe upper lobe predominant emphysema,lung volume reduction surgery is an excellent alternative which results in improvement in functional status and long-term mortality.In 2018,endobronchial valves were approved by the Food and Drug Administration for severe upper lobe predominant emphysema as they demonstrated improvement in lung function,exercise capacity,and quality of life.However,the role of endobronchial valves in native lung emphysema in SLT patients has not been studied.CASE SUMMARY We describe an unusual case of severe emphysema who underwent a successful SLT 15 years ago and had gradual worsening of lung function suggestive of chronic lung allograft dysfunction.However,her lung function improved significantly after a spontaneous pneumothorax of the native lung resulting in auto-deflation of large bullae.CONCLUSION This case highlights the clinical significance of native lung hyperinflation in single lung transplant recipient and how spontaneous decompression due to pneumothorax led to clinical improvement in our patient.

Interventional pulmonology for chronic inflammatory airway diseases

Chronic inflammatory airway diseases,such as chronic bronchitis,chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,emphysema,and bronchial asthma,pose significant healthcare challenges.Interventional treatments offer promise as valuable complements to the optimal medical therapy recommended by the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease guideline and the Global Initiative for Asthma guideline.By directly accessing the airways,these minimally invasive procedures enable precise interventions.They encompass a wide range of techniques including bronchial thermoplasty and targeted lung denervation for both chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and severe asthma,bronchoscopic lung volume reduction(including the use of endobronchial valves,coils,and bronchoscopic thermal vapor ablation),airway bypass and peripheral stent placement for emphysema,bronchial rheoplasty and spray cryotherapy for chronic bronchitis,and other emerging methods.These interventional treatments aim to improve patients’symptoms by reducing lung volume,alleviating hyperinflation,eliminating vagal innervation,disrupting hyperplastic goblet cells and thus reducing excessive mucus secretion,and weakening submucosal smooth muscles.This review highlights the potential advantages of interventional treatments for chronic inflammatory airway diseases and discusses relevant techniques tailored to specific disease subtypes.The overall aim is to assist interventional pulmonologists in selecting the most appropriate techniques for individual patients.