‘Watch and wait’ is better than plastic tube intervention for collapsed lung.
For decades, the standard treatment for collapsed lung has been interventional, with a plastic tube being inserted into the chest to drain the collected air and help the lung reinflate.
Now, a study has challenged tradition by showing that “watching and waiting” is a superior approach for treating primary spontaneous pneumothorax.
This trial was one of two winners of the Australian Clinical Trials Alliance’s Trial of the Year Award in May.
And it’s already started to shift clinical practice, with the Therapeutic Guidelines now recommending conservative management in the first instance, independent of the size of the primary spontaneous pneumothorax.
Allergy & Respiratory Republic interviewed one author of the study, Dr Emma Ball, a respiratory specialist at the Royal Hobart Hospital.
