Recently, Xiao Liu (pseudonym), a 25-year-old man in Changsha, Hunan Province, attended a colleague's birthday party and ordered a song "New Noble Concubine Drunk" while singing on KTV. Unexpectedly, when he reached the high-pitched part, he suddenly felt that his chest was stuffy and he couldn't lift his breath.
After the symptoms of discomfort, Xiao Liu thought that it was caused by his emotions when singing, and it would be better to rest for a while, so he and his colleagues insisted on singing until the early morning of the next day before going home. As a result, after arriving home, it is not only difficult to sleep, but also always feels that the chest is stuffy and panicked, and it cannot be relieved for a long time.
At about 7 o'clock in the morning the next day, the chest pain intensified, and even the breathing difficulties were so painful that it was impossible to walk normally, and the family quickly sent Xiao Liu to Changsha Central Hospital for treatment.
The doctor's examination found that Xiao Liu's right lung had multiple pulmonary bullae, that is, an air sac with a diameter of more than 1 cm in the lung tissue. When he sang, because of the excessive force, the air sac was broken, and the gas entered the chest cavity from the outside world, compressing the volume of his lung tissue to the original 15%, if not treated in time, it is likely to be life-threatening. Subsequently, the medical staff performed a bullacrectomy for the young man. He recovered well after the operation and was discharged from the hospital on 26 November.
Yang Jijie, chief physician of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery of Changsha Central Hospital, said that the man suffered from a disease called spontaneous pneumothorax, which is more common in thin and tall young men, and is prone to seizures after strenuous exercise, coughing or singing loudly.
What is spontaneous pneumothorax?
Spontaneous pneumothorax refers to the rupture of lung tissue and visceral pleura due to lung disease, or the spontaneous rupture of pulmonary bullae and fine emphysema blisters near the surface of the lungs, so that air in the lungs and bronchi escapes into the pleural cavity. It is more common in young adults or in men with chronic bronchitis, emphysema, and tuberculosis. This disease is one of the pulmonary emergencies, severe cases can be life-threatening, timely treatment can be cured.
Why does soaring high pitch cause such a serious "internal injury"?
When singing difficult songs, it will cause pressure on the chest cavity and abdominal cavity and squeeze the internal organs. In particular, people with incomplete development of pulmonary vellicles, local inflammation of the lungs, relatively weak lungs, emphysema and other underlying diseases are prone to pneumothorax. It is important to note that idiopathic people with relatively weak lungs have a certain degree of concealment, and usually do not show symptoms of the disease unless the predisposing factors are present. These groups are more common in men with tall, thin, flat bodies. Therefore, it is best for such people not to force high pitches.
What actions cause spontaneous pneumothorax?
When strenuous exercise, exerting force to relieve stool, bending down to pick up heavy objects, laughing, holding your breath, coughing, or suddenly turning around and stretching your waist will cause the pressure in the lungs to rise, and the large alveoli of the lungs will continue to fill and rupture like a "balloon" and the pneumothorax will occur.
Features at the time of spontaneous pneumothorax attacks
1. Difficulty breathing
Pneumothorax attacks are associated with dyspnea, the severity of which is related to the course of the attack, the degree to which the lungs are compressed, and the original state of lung function.
2. Chest pain
Pneumothorax is often associated with sudden sharp tingling and knife cuts, independent of sudden rupture of bullae and the degree of compression of the lungs, and may be related to increased pressure in the pleura cavity and parietal pleura stretching.
3. Irritating cough
Occasional irritating cough during spontaneous pneumothorax.
4. Other symptoms
When pneumothorax is combined with blood pneumothorax, if the amount of bleeding is high, the patient will have palpitations, low blood pressure, and cold limbs.
Please go to the hospital as soon as the onset of the disease
Pneumothorax is not something that can be solved by taking medicine, and once the onset of the disease should be immediately treated in the hospital. If it is a small amount of gas backlog, it can be repaired by rest, oxygen, etc.; if it is a large amount of gas, it is necessary to use chest cavity closed drainage, insert a drainage tube on the chest wall, and after the gas is ejected, the lungs have space to gradually expand and recover with breathing.
Doctors suggest that people with thin and tall bodies can usually eat more coarse fiber foods, such as fruits, oats and barley, and carry out aerobic exercise appropriately, such as jogging, tai chi, swimming, brisk walking, aerobics, etc. Once chest tightness, dyspnea, chest pain and other symptoms occur, go to the hospital for examination and treatment in time.
Source: Hangzhou Daily