Re-expansion pulmonary edema after a thoracic surgery: a rare complication

Abstract

Re-expansion pulmonary edema rarely complicates thoracic drainage. The diagnosis of this pathology is radiological and clinical and must be noted in the event of any respiratory distress following pleural drainage. A 70-year-old patient was admitted to the operating room for a pleurectomy with surgical removal of an emphysema bubble after the failure of 02 pneumothorax drainage attempts. The immediate post-operative consequences were marked by the occurrence of re-expansion edema, which motivated the transfer of the patient to the intensive care unit for ventilatory support. The evolution was favorable due to the early recognition of the radioclinical presentation.