Nil Intervention is at Times the Best Intervention

Authors

Pratap Upadhya, Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India
Muniza Bai, Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
Veeraraghavan Gunasekaran, Department of Radiodiagnosis, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India
Dharm P. Dwivedi, Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India
Shahana MP, Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, India

Abstract

A sudden drop of air-fluid level in the pneumonectomy space in the absence of a bronchopleural fistula and pleural infection is termed benign emptying of the pneumonectomy space (BEPS). We report a 28-year-old female patient who presented to a tertiary care referral centre, in Pondicherry, India in 2020 with multiple episodes of vomiting. Subsequent to a left-sided pneumonectomy due to tuberculosis, she was diagnosed with BEPS. Generally, patients with BEPS are clinically stable, afebrile with no fluid expectoration and have a normal white blood cell count. Bronchoscopy reveals an intact bronchial stump and pleural fluid cultures are often sterile. In terms of management, close monitoring and early detection of a bronchopleural fistula are the key points. BEPS should be a differential diagnosis in case of a drop in the air-fluid level of the post-pneumonectomy space. Awareness of this entity is crucial as it helps prevent unnecessary and morbid surgical interventions.

Publication Date

11-30-2023

First Page

539

Last Page

542

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Upadhya, Pratap; Bai, Muniza; Gunasekaran, Veeraraghavan; Dwivedi, Dharm P.; and MP, Shahana (2023) "Nil Intervention is at Times the Best Intervention," Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal: Vol. 23: 539-542.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.18295/squmj.12.2022.071