Spontaneous Hemothorax*
A Comprehensive Review
Hakim Azfar Ali, MD; Michael Lippmann, MD, FCCP; Uday Mundathaje, MD;
and Ghulam Khaleeq, MD
(CHEST 2008; 134:1056 1065) malignancies, tuberculosis, uremia, and vascular pro-
cesses such as pulmonary infarction.
Key words: coagulopathy; endometriosis; exostoses; fibrothorax; A true hemothorax, however, usually signals a
hemothorax; neoplasia; spontaneous pneumothorax
more blatant compromise of the vascular wall. The
involved vessel could either be a normal vessel
Abbreviations: AVM arteriovenous malformation; EDS Ehlers- undergoing an abnormal stress or an abnormal vessel
Danlos syndrome; HCC hepatocellular carcinoma; HHT hered-
itary hemmorhagic telangiectasia; IPFT intrapleural fibrinolytic rupturing without precipitating factors.
therapy; SHP spontaneous hemopneumothorax; VATS video- Most of the data about spontaneous hemothorax
assisted thoracic surgery are in the form of scattered case reports and case
series.1 Table 1 gives a summary of the diagnoses
associated with nonpneumothorax-related spontane-
H emothorax by definition is extraction of pleural
fluid with a hematocrit 50% of the blood ous hemothoraces. The major etiologies will be
discussed.
hematocrit. Most cases of hemothorax are related to
open or closed chest trauma or procedures such as
central lines, thoracentesis, pleural biopsy, or cathe-
terization. Spontaneous hemothorax is much less Spontaneous Hemopneumothorax
common, and the causes include malignancies, anti- Spontaneous pneumothorax is by far the most
coagulant medications, vascular ruptures (aortic dis- common cause of hemothorax. Our review found
section, arteriovenous malformations [AVMs]), en- hemothorax to be a complication in 3 to 7% of cases
dometriosis, pulmonary infarctions, adhesions with of spontaneous pneumothorax2 Spontaneous hemo-
pneumothorax, and hematologic abnormalities such pneumothorax (SHP) occurs mostly in young pa-
as hemophilia. tients (mean age, 22.1 to 34.0 years).
Pleural fluid imparts a red color indistinguishable The earliest reports of the condition have been
from blood at a hematocrit 5%. It is therefore traced to Laennec (1828), Whittaker (1876),3 and Pitt
always important to measure the hematocrit of any (1900). Approximately 300 cases have been reported in
hemorrhagic pleural effusion. The hematocrit may the literature in the form of cases and case series.4 12
be reduced due to secondary dilution to less than the SHP is defined by Ohmori and colleagues13 as the
required 50% that of blood within a few days, accumulation of 400 mL of blood in the pleural
making it appear as a hemorrhagic exudate. The cavity in association with spontaneous pneumotho-
definition of hemothorax has therefore included rax. Sometimes the patients can present in shock
hematocrits ranging from 25 to 50% that of blood. with blood loss 600 mL and the mechanical effects
Hemorrhagic effusions have been associated with of a pneumothorax. There are said to be three
mechanisms of bleeding in hemopneumothorax.14
*From the Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia PA.
The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose. First, bleeding can result from a torn adhesion
Manuscript received March 14, 2008; revision accepted May 6, between the parietal and visceral pleura.2 At autopsy,
2008. adhesions have been shown to be present in 50% of
Reproduction of this article is prohibited without written permission
from the American College of Chest Physicians (www.chestjournal. patients 20 years of age who have had no history of
org/misc/reprints.shtml). pulmonary disease. According to Barry et al,15 the
Correspondence to: Hakim Azfar Ali, MD, Division of Pulmonary site of bleeding is usually a small noncontractile
and Critical Care, Albert Einstein Medical Center, 5401 Old York
Rd, Philadelphia PA 19141; e-mail: azfarali1@gmail.com vessel on the parietal pleura, where vascular adhe-
DOI: 10.1378/chest.08-0725 sions exist. Second, bleeding may result from the