Abstract

LURASCHI CENTURION, Víctor Raúl; ALMADA RUIZ DIAZ, Montserrat  and  KIM, Roun. Delayed pneumomediastinum following blunt chest trauma. Cir. parag. [online]. 2025, vol.49, n.2, pp.23-26. ISSN 2307-0420.  https://doi.org/10.18004/sopaci.2025.agosto.23.

Isolated and delayed-onset traumatic pneumomediastinum is a rare condition that may go unnoticed without proper clinical suspicion and radiologic interpretation. We report the case of a patient with blunt chest trauma who presented one week after the incident, with imaging findings of pneumomediastinum without pneumothorax. Bronchoscopy revealed a lesion in the left upper lobar bronchus, which was successfully managed with pleural drainage. The clinical course was favorable, with progressive resolution confirmed by computed tomography. This case highlights the importance of follow-up in seemingly mild chest trauma and a stepwise diagnostic approach based on resource availability.

Keywords : neumomediastino; trauma cerrado de tórax; fibrobroncoscopía; lesiones del árbol traqueobronquial; drenaje pleural; pneumomediastinum; blunt chest trauma; fibrobronchoscopy; tracheobronchial injuries; chest tube drainage.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )