UKC

Hi, I'm looking for a bit of medical advice. I suffered from a spontaneous pneumothorax a few weeks ago. My right lung fully collapsed randomly in the office and I spent a few days in the hospital with a chest drain in to try to re-inflate my lung to limited success. I was discharged with a lower section of my lung still collapsed to recover at home.

I still have a dull pain in my lung and a bit of pain in the area of collapse if I take a particularly deep breath but for the most part my breathing seems fine. Can anyone tell me if I can go back to bouldering in doors with still a collapsed lung? The collapse was spontaneous and not related to health problems or an injury but I obviously don't want to make things worse. Would bouldering be ok while I recover?

In reply to JForonda:
I heard talking to a doctor for medical advice is a pretty good idea, try that.

Failing that, drink plenty of water, get lots of rest and avoid fatty or spicy foods

In reply to JForonda:

Go seek professional medical advice, but you might want to take it mega easy for a good few weeks.

In reply to JForonda:

Hi, not sure if I can give you medical advice but I certainly empathize and hopefully can give you some reassurance as I also had a spontaneous pneumothorax when I was in my early twenties.
It did take a while to recover from the phycological effects rather than the physical of such a huge episode- I thought I was super fit climbing hard and regularly, running and cycling ect then bang! For about a year I worried everytime I got out of breath and was anxious to really push myself physically but eventually this pasted and within 18 months I was certainly climbing far beyond my previous pre lung collapse grade.
Take it easy and when to feel confident and fit enough get out and walk you'll soon be climbing again although 'm not sure climbing in a chalk filled environment would be too helpful initially but as I said earlier the sooner you get back to your old self and get your head around what's happened the quicker the rehab.
I hope that helps and the very best wishes for your recovery.
Regards
Jim

In reply to JForonda:

Hi, I've had this happen a couple of times, weak lung walls after pneumonia, and the docs said it is more common in tall skinny males for some reason. I'd say take it easy, and don't overstretch yourself. I went on a weeks surfing to Cornwall 3 days after leaving hospital one time, (stubborn, didn't want to miss out) and was for the most part fine, but did have one bad night where it took me a long time to settle the breathing/catch breath/yawn. If you rest it shouldn't take long to heal.

In reply to JForonda:
Bad luck, hope recovery is swift!

Your questions really need to be directed to your respiratory physician as it depends on a few factors (mainly complete resolution of the pneumothorax on imaging and resolution of symptoms but a few patient specific things too). You should have pretty prompt follow up with that story, so you should have an opportunity to ask.

In general terms, if there are no complicating factors, people should be able to get back to full activity (except scuba diving!!) in the fullness of time.

Good luck

In reply to JForonda:

I went through this for 2 years in my early 20's. My right lung collapsed, healed, then my left one a few weeks after. A few more weeks then passed and the same sequence again which was pretty disheartening I must say. In the end I had both my lungs stitched to my chest walls in two separate operations called a plurectomy if my memory serves me right. My physique at the time was very slim/skinny and my consultant told me to go to a gym and start building some muscle around my chest and back area, so if you're slim it may be worth doing this or as others say see a specialist for advice. Fingers crossed it's a one off which is most common I believe.

I'm in my mid 20s and pretty slim in build so I'll try to build up some mass to reduce the chances of reoccurrence (I was already working on building some mass on my chest as my back and shoulders relatively over developed).

Is there anything I can do exercise/training wise while I recover? I've stopped pretty much all excercise since and I'm starting to feel unfit. Obviously any cardio would be a bad idea but I'm thinking some light/easy climbing might be ok?

Did anyone here get a follow up xray to check things over? All my doctor did was discharge me with antibiotics and instructions on not to fly or dive. There was no mention of a follow up dispite the still present partial collapse so I don't know when I can go back to normal activities.

In reply to JForonda:

Whilst NHS is brilliant with critical care, you might need to push for follow up. Go see your GP asap, ask for advice on excersise, explain about it still being partially collapsed, push for a follow up x-ray.

Generally, the rule is if you feel unwell with symptoms below the neck, knock the training on the head until you're better. I'd be careful of bouldering as others have mentioned, chalky atmosphere, plus weird strain on your body/core and an element of cardiovascular/pushing yourself... I'd just really check with a doctor you were sorted first.

In reply to JForonda:

I'm quite surprised the drain wasn't left in until your lung was re-inflated fully but I'm no doctor. I had loads of chest x-rays over those 2 years (a worrying amount in fact) and they were mainly to check the lung was back up. When your lung is back to normal you'll kind of feel your way back in to exercising, you'll just know what's good and bad. I was mountain biking in them days and kind of knew how much to do. I'd get yourself a follow up check and voice your worries, get your lung capacity checked etc and see if it has re-inflated fully. Good luck.

In reply to JForonda:

With only partial resolution you should have follow up. Chase this up if not the case. Via GP if necessary but ideally directly with the consultant who looked after your care.

In reply to Steve Perry:

The chest drain stopped bubbling early on so it was ineffective. I'll go visit the gp for more advice and a follow up xray.

Thanks everyone for the support,

Jamie