Spontaneous pneumothorax.

Spontaneous pneumothorax in the apparently healthy individual is a reasonably common occurrence. In a military hospital serving a large population in the age range most at risk for this entity, we have gained a wide experience with this problem. A review of our 10 year experience with spontaneous pneumothorax and its surgical treatment has been presented. In our series, a decreased male to female ratio was noted. This may reflect the increased incidence of female smokers. A total of 9.4 percent of our patients had complications of their tube thoracostomy treatment and an additional 10 percent required surgery for resolution of their problem. Our indications for pleural abrasion have been discussed. Pleural abrasion remains our mainstay of surgical therapy for treatment of recurrent spontaneous pneumothorax with acceptable morbidity.