Simultaneous Bilateral Primary Spontaneous Pneumothorax: A Case Report and a Review of the Literature

BACKGROUND: Simultaneous bilateral primary spontaneous pneumothorax (SBPSP) is an extremely rare and potentially fatal condition. Patients usually have no relevant medical conditions. Some cases, however, may have certain risk factors such as smoking, being young, and male gender. We reported a case of a healthy young male who presented with BPSP. CASE PRESENTATION: A 21-year-old man with a past medical history of well-controlled intermittent asthma presented with acute worsening shortness of breath overnight. Chest X-ray performed showed bilateral large pneumothorax with significantly compressed mediastinum. Chest tubes were placed bilaterally with immediate clinical improvement. However, the chest tubes continued to have an air leak without full lungs expansion. Computed tomography scan without contrast of the chest revealed subpleural blebs in both upper lobes. The patient underwent bilateral video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) with apical bleb resection, bilateral pleurectomy, and bilateral doxycycline pleurodesis. Biopsy of the apical blebs and parietal pleura of both lungs were negative for any atypical cells suspicious for malignancy or Langerhans cell histiocytosis. The patient had been doing well six months following surgery with no recurrence of pneumothorax. CONCLUSION: SBPSP is a rare and urgent condition that requires prompt intervention. In a young patient without any underlying disease, surgical intervention, such as VATS, is relatively safe and can be considered early.