Läkartidningen
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In this retrospective study 53 consecutive in-hospital patients with spontaneous pneumothorax were studied. The most common initial treatments were tube drainage (n = 38) and needle drainage (n = 8). The median length of stay at hospital was 6 days, with increasing age as the strongest predictor. ⋯ During the follow up period (6-44 months) we found that 21% of the patients needed a second hospitalisation because of pneumothorax. Women had an increased risk for recurrence. Our results indicate that needle drainage, in selected situations, is a valuable alternative to tube drainage, with a shorter length of stay and less complications.