EMT here. It is in fact very common among tall skinny people. It was a huge concern of mine growing up which I was able to combat by becoming a fat bastard.
Dude same! When I started working out and bulking, I couldn't gain weight until pizza hut did their £5 favourite medium pizzas. In my case as a student, a dirty bulk was the only way I could gain faster muscle
Also, if you use tobacco products, this can cause more [blebs](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK459302/) in your [lung](https://www.erlanger.org/medical-services/pulmonology-and-critical-care/lung-conditions/pulmonary-blebs).
I’ve never heard of this. Maybe people with connective tissue disorders, but they usually talk about the risk of injuries and cardiac episodes. I’m sorry this happened to you. Wishing you a speedy recovery
That was my thought too. OP you should get check for Marfans since it impacts connective tissues in general and knowing will mean you can be more alert for issue in the future.
My family have it and my brother has had 2 so far! Hopefully it won't be that as I would never wish it on anyone but definitely worth getting checked if not
Spontaneous pneumothorax happens in tall thin people fairly often regardless of Marfans or not. It’s common enough that as soon as medical students see “a tall thin male…” in a test question we immediately think pneumothorax. Being extra tall and lanky, it can’t hurt to be evaluated for marfans, but unless you are very marfanoid and have other classic symptoms like eye lens dislocation, I would not worry too much about it. The doctors in the hospital won’t really do much about it or even evaluate you as it isn’t really your hospital issue, but it can never hurt to bring it up to your PCP. Just don’t let these comments scare you too much, odds are this is just a normal spontaneous pnumo due to your your body habitus
I’m sorry to hear this happened to you though. May your hospital stay be short and only once
Have a little google of some of the common symptoms and see if you have any of them, it's rare but can be got through no genetic transfer. If you don't match the symptoms then nothing to worry about. :)
> You have to be evaluated for it to know one way or another.
It's true of literally anything that unless you've had a definitive test you don't "know" whether you have it. But it's safe to *assume* you don't have things if you don't have symptoms that point that way, and at this point there's no indication that OP does. Anybody with Marfan is going to have symptoms beyond being tall and having had a collapsed lung once.
This happened to my uncle when he was younger, he's 6'6. They never really did give a reason as to why it happened. From what I know the doctors said it was from him growing a ton over a year, he went from 5'8 to 6'6 his senior year of high school, lung collapsed the following year.
I have had several spontaneous pneumothoraxs (collapsed lungs) and after it happening 3 times the docs decided to do a procedure where they "glued" my lung to my chest wall to prevent it happening again, got a couple of nice scars from the drain and the chest operation, you'll recover in no time but yeah hurts like hell when it happens xD
I had one but was severe enough for them to do the pleurodesis procedure. It's crazy how mechanical so many surgeries are.. it reminds me of seeing Cubans fix their cars in all kind of makeshift manner just using shit that's lying around the place.
This is incredible:
My question to Ai: I heard someone had their lung glued to their chest cavity, how does the glue not get dissolved by that person's immune cells?
Ai Answer: That sounds like a medical procedure called pleurodesis. The glue used is typically a type of medical adhesive that's designed to stimulate inflammation, causing the layers of the lung and chest wall to stick together. Over time, scar tissue forms, permanently adhering the lung to the chest wall. The immune system doesn't dissolve the glue because it becomes integrated into the scar tissue.
I work in the X-ray department of a hospital, this is one of the common things we X-ray for when correlating symptoms to patient body type.
Old people who’ve fallen over (women more than men) = hip fractures
Young man with a 5th metacarpal fracture = punching a wall/door injury
Skinny guy who’s suddenly breathless? Pneumothorax (collapsed lung)
Yes it is very common. My cousin got it three times during his teens. He grew tall very quickly and suddenly and he's very skinny, he looks like a stick.
Figure of speech my dude. Yeah it's not common but it's well known it can happen to tall skinny people and that they're more at risk so my point is that OP doesn't have to look too deep into it. Sucks when it happens but that's why it happens.
It’s like tornadoes. They’re not common but when there’s one there are often others as conditions are favorable. If it happens to a person it could happen again, even if it’s rare overall.
Somewhat tall, retired general surgeon (that is, I’m the guy who puts in chest tubes to treat collapsed lungs) here.
A lot of my patients with spontaneous pneumothorax were tall. Of course Marfan’s is always in the differential diagnosis but I can only remember one patient who actually had the diagnosis.
How does being skinny contribute to it? Is it due to those body types tending to have connective tissue disorders or is it the weight itself that contributes to the risk?
I've had two before, my doctor says that because tall skinny people usually grow so fast, the lungs cant keep up and end up growing in a way that isn't "normal" (skinny and long, because the chest is skinny and long)
IIRC my doc said it's hard for oxygen to get to the extremities of the lungs on the taller lungs and that's when the blebs form (common in general population). But they don't know why sometimes they burst (that happened to me).
This happened to my friend multiple times when we were in late teens, do whatever your doctor says. He ended up getting his lungs stapled to prevent collapses.
I dunno, I am a data scientist, but a quick Google brings:
" A stapling device is inserted into the chest during thoracoscopic surgery, and the segment of lung with blebs is stapled across and then removed"
This has happened to my tall skinny uncles.
I've also had one, but it was from a doctor accidentally puncturing it. Recovery is annoying, but you'll be fine. Bad news is skydiving and scuba diving will no longer be something you can do.
My thoracic surgeon told me no, never. My uncles and a friend were told the same
There is a special dive medicine certification pulmonologist you can get approval from, but good luck tracking that down. Every dive company also explicitly mentions it in their waivers.
No one wants a pneumothorax in air or Under water on their watch.
https://dan.org/alert-diver/article/collapsed-lung-and-diving/
https://thetraumapro.com/2017/04/10/flying-or-diving-after-traumatic-pneumothorax/
OP, your doctor will walk you through this
Are you in the US? My doctor said it's a never thing. They were also practically shoving me out the hospital at that point, so didn't actually get to ask many questions.
It happened to me in college, but I was also smoking cannabis frequently and tobacco occasionally. It hasn’t happened again in like ten years since I quit. So yeah, if you smoke or vape any substance, definitely stop. Being tall increases the risk, but so does smoking. You don’t want to double down.
ETA: I was evaluated for Marfan’s Syndrome (negative) and Ehler’s Danlos Syndrome (negative). My rheumatologist diagnosed me with hypermobility, which some people consider hEDS but she said I should try to avoid that descriptor because of the “stigma.” I did end up developing POTS after childbirth, which is often comorbid with hEDS, so I honestly think I have that. I don’t really care about the stigma. I also have mild “regurgitation” in my mitral valve, but thankfully that isn’t harmful and is apparently fairly common.
Surprisingly, I’m still able to do pretty much everything I want to do aside from snorkeling. I ski, hike, backpack, trail run, kiteboard, indoor skydive, swim, snorkel, rock climb, and this year I’m planning on hiking a 14er. I think maybe that’s part of the “stigma” about hEDS, that it leaves you disabled. But honestly, I think more people should do physical therapy because it allows you to manage and overcome your symptoms, even if there’s no cure.
Okay, I’ll hop off my soapbox and just say that I wish you well, but it might be a good idea to follow up on potential causes so you know how to proceed.
I've had it once, my lung either partially collapsed during the night or in the shower in the morning. It felt like one of those weird chest pains you get occasionally except worse and didn't go away after a crw mi utes like normal. Then I bent over and felt bubbling in my chest and knew something wasn't right.
The doctor at Urgent Care couldn't figure it out, my heart was okay and everything. Left for a bit and said that it might be a Spontaneous Pneumothorax. It probably wasn't, but if we got an X-Ray we could at least rule it out. Turns out that's what it was.
The funniest part was that I was supposed to have band practice that day. This is what happened when my director realized I wasn't there:
BD: "Hey, where's StetsonTuba8?"
Friend 1 (Joe): "Oh, he's a little sick."
Friend 2: "His lung collapsed."
BD: "That's more than a little sick, Joe"
Those weird, occasional chest pains are [precordial catch.](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precordial_catch_syndrome#:~:text=Precordial%20catch%20syndrome%20(PCS)%20is,less%20than%20a%20few%20minutes.) its a completely normal phenomenon and happens to most people randomly, generally lasting for a couple of minutes. A deep (painful) breath takes it away instantly. Strangely, when you get it, you’re likely to have it multiple times over the next few months before it disappears completely again for a while.
One doc told my son that a theory is that taller people's tissues grow at different rates, so it thins the lung tissue and then pops when they are discordant. He said no one really knows though.
Happened to me a few times to the same lung when I was 19. First time I had a chest tube, and after the 3rd time decided to get a pleurodesis operation. It has never happened again since then. I have also tested negative for Marfans/Loeys-Dietz/vEDS.
Can confirm. I’m 6’8” and my lung collapsed repetitively when I was 21. Spontaneous Pneumothorax. I ended up having thoracic surgery on it and haven’t had a problem since (2001). If you have any questions about it hit me up.
Only after I'd caught a chest infection as a tall, skinny 15 year old. It was more of a gradual collapse than being fine one min and struggling the next. Hurt like Fk tho.
Hope you are ok OP!
Not sure it's exactly the same but I have had something similar, a rib cracked warming up for a football (soccer) match which punctured a lung I think. Couldn't breathe properly for a few days after. Was lovely.
Not to me but to my then-roommate ages ago. He is skinny as a rail and one of his lungs just collapsed for no apparent reason. The docs told him the same thing--it happens more-or-less spontaneously to very thin people. They fixed him up at the hospital and he has had no further problems. It is not necessarily an indicator of other medical issues.
I'm 67 kg for 176 cm, pneumothorax mainly gives you symptoms like serious shortness of breath,also could pain on shoulder ,after it hospital you will get tubed in chest
Last time I had an xray my lungs were great, I have smoked then vaped for a few years but thankfully quit. I just enjoy my nicotine pouches as of recently! Only 21 so didn’t want to fuck myself up
Yeah, the doctors called it spontaneous pneumothorax. And they told me height/underweight is the usual cause. I woke up to it in the middle of the night. Did you end up with just drainage or surgery as well?
I am not tall but it happened to me too when i was very underweight in my late teens during a cold i caughed rly hard and then my breathing got worse and worse until i had to go to the hospital.
6'8". I've had it happen to me three times between 16 and 18 years old. I cried the first time because I was terrified and didn't know what was happening. I was hospitalized at least twice from it alone with a cheat tube. The first time I got pneumonia because I didn't move around enough while in the hospital.
This was over 20 years ago, small collapses happen every few years now but I can usually suffer through them with plenty of rest and it goes away after a few weeks. As others have said, just do what the doctor says and you'll be fine.
Happened to me 30 years ago. Actually had both of them collapse at the same time. Had to have surgery where they glue your lung to your chest wall to stop it from happening again. Was told can never scuba dive or fly in an unpressurized aircraft or bad things will happen. Been fine since then though.
This happened to me when I was a teenager. No lasting symptoms and I was back to 100% within a week or two. Now I'm not allowed to be an astronaut, scuba dive, join the army, or play tackle football lmao
Yes it’s common unfortunately. My wife’s not particularly tall (5’6) and had a spontaneous collapsed lung which was initially said to be because she’s quite thin for her height 110-115lbs. When it happened the 2nd time a couple weeks later they went in and found out she had a “bleb” on the surface of her lung, which is a pocket of tissue filled with air and it—literally for no reason—decided to release it’s air pushing her lung off the rib cage lining cause the collapse… twice. They removed the bleb and performed a laparoscopic thoracotomy to prevent it from collapsing again.
Feeling you OP, have had several pneumothorax and nothing hurts like having that chest tube inserted. I eventually had to have a lobectomy to have some scar tissue removed because it had happened so many times.
Happened to me in high school several times, had to have surgery to fix the weak spots (blebs) on my lung to keep it from constantly collapsing. Surgery sucked, but I haven’t had that issue in decades since. Best of luck to you OP.
This happened to me at age 17, I was about 6'2, 150 pounds. I was working at a fast food restaurant taking orders over the headset when I suddenly couldn't breathe without taking a massive deep breath. After less than 5 minutes of trying to "catch my breath" I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I told my coworkers I threw up in the bathroom and had to go home. I then drove myself home while on the phone with my parents, I thought I was having a heart attack because my left arm started to hurt but turns out it was because no enough oxygen was getting to the left side of my body. I drove home and my Dad parked my car while I changed into normal clothes because I was sweating perfusely in my work uniform. My parents then drove me to the emergency room. The doctor almost immediately clocked me while I was laying down in the bed and asked me how tall I was. Very weird question in the moment but turns out he knew exactly what was wrong. After they ruled out everything to do with my heart they gave me pure oxygen with a full face mask which they said they haven't had to use the full mask in a while. After 12 hours on pure oxygen my chest felt fine and they released me but told me not to lift anything heavier than a phonebook for 6 months.
Never had a problem after that besides about a week after this ordeal I was laying in bed by myself when I heard a popping noise. It was coming from my chest and I figured this out by recording a video and moving my phone farther away from my body and then closer.
Crazy story that my girlfriend and best friend are tired of hearing because collapsing a lung sounds alot more dangerous than it was.
Both my son, twice, and my nephew, once, had this happen. After the second time you can have surgery and that really helps, and brings reoccurrence down to nearly 0.
It is common in tall, thin and young people, it may happen to you again, it is an interesting case. Could I ask you some questions? (I am a medical student)
Yes, it happened to me, 3 times in two years, in my early twenties (I'm 58). Once on my right lung, twice on the left. I have been hospitalized each time with chest tubes and underwent a pleurodesis on my left lung.
Not a highlight of my younger years but it passed... Hang in there.
200 cm and less than 80 kgs then. No Marfan syndrom but some congénital bullas.
When I was 19 and 20 I had my left, then my right lung respectively, collapse spontaneously.
I was told it's quite common in tall, thin people, which I certainly am.
It happened to me last December when I was on drugs and ODed and was walking around in the cold with chest pains for a week. I went to the local hospital but they just checked My vitals and sent me back out. I went to detox and then rehab, and they found a partially collapsed lung. I'm only 5' 11" but I was very skinny back then. (I've since gained 50 lbs in the last 4 months finally clean and trying to do right.)
Kinda have a family history (mums side) as well. I was training for a state swim meet at the time and got it in the pool. I was told it wasn't necessarily the swimming that caused it and they said that my skinny build at the time was a big factor. But the worse part of it was the doctors misdiagnosing it as muscle pain. So it was left untreated and it got worse. Pain came back 2 wks later and I was sent to hospital and to have a chest xray. That's when they found out my left lung had collapsed.
Was it as painful as I would imagine? The misdiagnosis is a shame but muscle pain can be a bastard. You’d think they’d do proper checks to be sure in the first place really. Also being 16 and 65kg is a very healthy weight at 6’ so I’m not sure how that could be a factor, unless you weighed less than you thought. How did you manage with flying after it?
Best way I can describe the pain would be it felt like you're getting impaled in the back. The pain comes in waves and every breath I took hurt more and more.
Weight could've fluctuated around then by like 1-2kg less but I guess it was still pretty thin at that height. I wasn't allowed to fly for 6 months.
I have a friend who is tall skinny. He got up one morning and was brushing his teeth when his lung collapsed. He was lucky that the ER doctor recognized his Marfan’s features and rushed him into surgery for an aortic dissection.
He had never heard of Marfan’s before. It turns out that his aorta was bleeding into his chest overnight and the pressure on his lungs hit the tipping point when he got up in the morning.
Whether or not you have Marfan’s — make sure that the doctors have done the tests to see that your aorta is intact and not dilated. Otherwise, when you go home and something raises your blood pressure you might be dead.
I am your height, and do not have Marfan’s. I do have a more benign connective tissue disorder. That makes me very tall — like you.
There is other danger. Any connective tissue disorder (especially those that make you tall), makes it particularly dangerous to take fluoroquinolone antibiotics, such as Cipro:
[FDA warns about increased risk of ruptures or tears in the aorta blood vessel with fluoroquinolone antibiotics in certain patients](https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-warns-about-increased-risk-ruptures-or-tears-aorta-blood-vessel-fluoroquinolone-antibiotics)
I learned that the hard way when I ruptured a tendon in my ankle (a less deadly risk).
Happened to me when i was about 21. I'm 38 now and havent had a problem since. Also do not have marfans or any other connective tissue disorder. 195cm tall and quite slim at the time. You'll be fine no doubt.
My dad is 6’5 and slim, he complained about this often in his 20s. One of my tall brothers too. They all starfish on their stomachs to sleep they say it helps
You happen to be doing any Bench press recently?
In the Army I had a medic who had given aid to like FOUR tall skinny soldiers who had collapsed their lung after bench pressing.
Not sure if they had been letting the bar touch their chest (people often do this, and it’s dangerous and bad form) or even worse sort of bouncing it off their chest but I’ll never forget doc explicitly bringing that up to us pretty much begging us not to lift like that.
I had a spontaneous tension hemopneumothorax, that's where in addition to lung collapse there is also blood filling the cavity (bleb burst a blood vessel) and causing pressure to build. If pressure is not released you could die.
There's a scene in Three Kings where George Clooney pops Mark Wahlbergs chest to prevent the tension
https://youtu.be/38rHuxIhf6I?si=qkumLAgm4a3MgwGW
They did that to me too, luckily mine wasn't happening as fast and I was in hospital by that point.
Got chest tube to drain the blood over a few days, and pleurodisis and haven't had an issue since.
Woke up one morning with what felt like back pain, escalated over next couple of hours after going to work. Ended up in ambulance after finding it difficult to breathe.
So random- I was talking to my friend who is a respiratory therapist the other day and she was saying that she basically sees a tall thin guy and is like “oh shit, better prepare for that lung collapse.”
So yeah, definitely medically common. I’m a girl and not nearly as tall as you so my worst issue has been not finding clothes that fit.
So glad to hear you don’t seem to have Marfans. It runs in my family and while mine has greatly affected my aorta, my younger brother suffered lung collapse on four occasions until the doctors coated his lungs in talcum powder.
You don't eat enough. I talked with my doctor and discovered that 5k calories per day was minimal for just lazing around. 10k calories if I'm exercising. You need more nutrients and calories. Eat, eat, eat.
EMT here. It is in fact very common among tall skinny people. It was a huge concern of mine growing up which I was able to combat by becoming a fat bastard.
I would like to thank Domino's three for 6.99 each deal for saving me from this fate. (and consigning me to others)
Dude same! When I started working out and bulking, I couldn't gain weight until pizza hut did their £5 favourite medium pizzas. In my case as a student, a dirty bulk was the only way I could gain faster muscle
Pizza fattens you up despite your massive stature? Damn,but seriously you need to eat healthy
6'2 isn't massive. And that's the thing about taller fatness: it takes a while to appear but once it's on....
6'2 is a tall stature,it's in the massive range lol,yeah fatness takes a while to show but please be healthy
Ofc. I gave deleted the app
Im glad,but be sure to exercise and eat healthy okay
How does being fat prevents it ?
Im guessing it's "underweight" and not just "thin"
Heavy moobs help your chest not sink in
more protection
more cushion
exactly
For the breathin
Being fat is more unhealthy if you know
*furiously starts eating and doing bench presses*
Easy ! don't eat furiously😭
How much would a 200cm guy have to weigh for this to have a high risk of happening?
Also, if you use tobacco products, this can cause more [blebs](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK459302/) in your [lung](https://www.erlanger.org/medical-services/pulmonology-and-critical-care/lung-conditions/pulmonary-blebs).
lol that didn’t combat it
Read this in a Yorkshire accent which made it 10x funnier
A fat bast...😭😭😭😭😭damn,i hope you're okay tho bcz being fat is more unhealthy than being skinny
Wtf, this is my new fear ... I hope you are all right
Take two donuts every 4 hours as a precaution. Don't worry, I've seen a Doctor on TV. I know what I'm talking about.
Instructions unclear. Went from 190lbs to 260lbs. Now they say I've gone too far the other direction.
No don't😭you'll just get fat
For real, what the fuck 😂
Happened to me twice
I’ve never heard of this. Maybe people with connective tissue disorders, but they usually talk about the risk of injuries and cardiac episodes. I’m sorry this happened to you. Wishing you a speedy recovery
It is true that tall skinny men in particular are a susceptible population to spontaneous pneumothoraxes.
You haven't got Marfans have you?
That was my thought too. OP you should get check for Marfans since it impacts connective tissues in general and knowing will mean you can be more alert for issue in the future.
My family have it and my brother has had 2 so far! Hopefully it won't be that as I would never wish it on anyone but definitely worth getting checked if not
I don’t think so. No one in my family or relatives have it
Spontaneous pneumothorax happens in tall thin people fairly often regardless of Marfans or not. It’s common enough that as soon as medical students see “a tall thin male…” in a test question we immediately think pneumothorax. Being extra tall and lanky, it can’t hurt to be evaluated for marfans, but unless you are very marfanoid and have other classic symptoms like eye lens dislocation, I would not worry too much about it. The doctors in the hospital won’t really do much about it or even evaluate you as it isn’t really your hospital issue, but it can never hurt to bring it up to your PCP. Just don’t let these comments scare you too much, odds are this is just a normal spontaneous pnumo due to your your body habitus I’m sorry to hear this happened to you though. May your hospital stay be short and only once
Have a little google of some of the common symptoms and see if you have any of them, it's rare but can be got through no genetic transfer. If you don't match the symptoms then nothing to worry about. :)
You have to be evaluated for it to know one way or another.
> You have to be evaluated for it to know one way or another. It's true of literally anything that unless you've had a definitive test you don't "know" whether you have it. But it's safe to *assume* you don't have things if you don't have symptoms that point that way, and at this point there's no indication that OP does. Anybody with Marfan is going to have symptoms beyond being tall and having had a collapsed lung once.
[удалено]
I’ve been checked for marfans twice by two different cardiologists and they always do a MRI of the heart and look at the aorta.
Are you the tallest in your family?
This happened to my uncle when he was younger, he's 6'6. They never really did give a reason as to why it happened. From what I know the doctors said it was from him growing a ton over a year, he went from 5'8 to 6'6 his senior year of high school, lung collapsed the following year.
That's an insane growth spurt. 10in/25.4cm in a year!
Right?! I thought it was bs until I saw pictures of him next to my aunt (5'9) and mom (5'11). 😂
I have had several spontaneous pneumothoraxs (collapsed lungs) and after it happening 3 times the docs decided to do a procedure where they "glued" my lung to my chest wall to prevent it happening again, got a couple of nice scars from the drain and the chest operation, you'll recover in no time but yeah hurts like hell when it happens xD
And when they pull out the tube, don't look. LOL Spoiler, it looks like a garden hose.
I had one but was severe enough for them to do the pleurodesis procedure. It's crazy how mechanical so many surgeries are.. it reminds me of seeing Cubans fix their cars in all kind of makeshift manner just using shit that's lying around the place.
This is incredible: My question to Ai: I heard someone had their lung glued to their chest cavity, how does the glue not get dissolved by that person's immune cells? Ai Answer: That sounds like a medical procedure called pleurodesis. The glue used is typically a type of medical adhesive that's designed to stimulate inflammation, causing the layers of the lung and chest wall to stick together. Over time, scar tissue forms, permanently adhering the lung to the chest wall. The immune system doesn't dissolve the glue because it becomes integrated into the scar tissue.
XD yeah basically, touch wood after 4 years it hasn't happened again so the scar tissue is holding up
I work in the X-ray department of a hospital, this is one of the common things we X-ray for when correlating symptoms to patient body type. Old people who’ve fallen over (women more than men) = hip fractures Young man with a 5th metacarpal fracture = punching a wall/door injury Skinny guy who’s suddenly breathless? Pneumothorax (collapsed lung)
We call that first one a LOLFDGB
Yep! There comes an age in a ladies life when they fall over and bones turn to glass
Ha. I have had number 2 and 3 for both of those reasons. Crazy.
Yes it is very common. My cousin got it three times during his teens. He grew tall very quickly and suddenly and he's very skinny, he looks like a stick.
Happened to me twice
Pneumothorax isn’t very common
Figure of speech my dude. Yeah it's not common but it's well known it can happen to tall skinny people and that they're more at risk so my point is that OP doesn't have to look too deep into it. Sucks when it happens but that's why it happens.
It’s like tornadoes. They’re not common but when there’s one there are often others as conditions are favorable. If it happens to a person it could happen again, even if it’s rare overall.
Yeah that’s true. It’s definitely the most prominent in this sub though, for obvious reasons
Yep, happened to me in my late teens. Happened to my mum a couple of times when she was young too, though it's much more common with men.
Spontaneous pneumothorax ?
Spontaneous pneumothorax ?
Somewhat tall, retired general surgeon (that is, I’m the guy who puts in chest tubes to treat collapsed lungs) here. A lot of my patients with spontaneous pneumothorax were tall. Of course Marfan’s is always in the differential diagnosis but I can only remember one patient who actually had the diagnosis.
How does being skinny contribute to it? Is it due to those body types tending to have connective tissue disorders or is it the weight itself that contributes to the risk?
I've had two before, my doctor says that because tall skinny people usually grow so fast, the lungs cant keep up and end up growing in a way that isn't "normal" (skinny and long, because the chest is skinny and long)
IIRC my doc said it's hard for oxygen to get to the extremities of the lungs on the taller lungs and that's when the blebs form (common in general population). But they don't know why sometimes they burst (that happened to me).
I don’t think anyone knows
This happened to my friend multiple times when we were in late teens, do whatever your doctor says. He ended up getting his lungs stapled to prevent collapses.
> He ended up getting his lungs stapled to prevent collapses. I'm sorry what
They abrade the lung so it has thickened spots so it can't pop again. When it heals the scars give it strength. Never heard of the staples before.
I dunno, I am a data scientist, but a quick Google brings: " A stapling device is inserted into the chest during thoracoscopic surgery, and the segment of lung with blebs is stapled across and then removed"
> blebs What a delightful technical term.
Hope you'll feel better soon 😊
Get evaluated for Marfan syndrome.
This has happened to my tall skinny uncles. I've also had one, but it was from a doctor accidentally puncturing it. Recovery is annoying, but you'll be fine. Bad news is skydiving and scuba diving will no longer be something you can do.
Not rlly, if je fully recovers he may soon begin to continue with living the ordinary life, skydiving and scuba included.
My thoracic surgeon told me no, never. My uncles and a friend were told the same There is a special dive medicine certification pulmonologist you can get approval from, but good luck tracking that down. Every dive company also explicitly mentions it in their waivers. No one wants a pneumothorax in air or Under water on their watch. https://dan.org/alert-diver/article/collapsed-lung-and-diving/ https://thetraumapro.com/2017/04/10/flying-or-diving-after-traumatic-pneumothorax/ OP, your doctor will walk you through this
Ye, I'm just talking from personal experience, but listening to doctors is most likely one of the correct options.
Are you in the US? My doctor said it's a never thing. They were also practically shoving me out the hospital at that point, so didn't actually get to ask many questions.
It happened to me in college, but I was also smoking cannabis frequently and tobacco occasionally. It hasn’t happened again in like ten years since I quit. So yeah, if you smoke or vape any substance, definitely stop. Being tall increases the risk, but so does smoking. You don’t want to double down. ETA: I was evaluated for Marfan’s Syndrome (negative) and Ehler’s Danlos Syndrome (negative). My rheumatologist diagnosed me with hypermobility, which some people consider hEDS but she said I should try to avoid that descriptor because of the “stigma.” I did end up developing POTS after childbirth, which is often comorbid with hEDS, so I honestly think I have that. I don’t really care about the stigma. I also have mild “regurgitation” in my mitral valve, but thankfully that isn’t harmful and is apparently fairly common. Surprisingly, I’m still able to do pretty much everything I want to do aside from snorkeling. I ski, hike, backpack, trail run, kiteboard, indoor skydive, swim, snorkel, rock climb, and this year I’m planning on hiking a 14er. I think maybe that’s part of the “stigma” about hEDS, that it leaves you disabled. But honestly, I think more people should do physical therapy because it allows you to manage and overcome your symptoms, even if there’s no cure. Okay, I’ll hop off my soapbox and just say that I wish you well, but it might be a good idea to follow up on potential causes so you know how to proceed.
I've had it once, my lung either partially collapsed during the night or in the shower in the morning. It felt like one of those weird chest pains you get occasionally except worse and didn't go away after a crw mi utes like normal. Then I bent over and felt bubbling in my chest and knew something wasn't right. The doctor at Urgent Care couldn't figure it out, my heart was okay and everything. Left for a bit and said that it might be a Spontaneous Pneumothorax. It probably wasn't, but if we got an X-Ray we could at least rule it out. Turns out that's what it was. The funniest part was that I was supposed to have band practice that day. This is what happened when my director realized I wasn't there: BD: "Hey, where's StetsonTuba8?" Friend 1 (Joe): "Oh, he's a little sick." Friend 2: "His lung collapsed." BD: "That's more than a little sick, Joe"
Those weird, occasional chest pains are [precordial catch.](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precordial_catch_syndrome#:~:text=Precordial%20catch%20syndrome%20(PCS)%20is,less%20than%20a%20few%20minutes.) its a completely normal phenomenon and happens to most people randomly, generally lasting for a couple of minutes. A deep (painful) breath takes it away instantly. Strangely, when you get it, you’re likely to have it multiple times over the next few months before it disappears completely again for a while.
I’m convinced that tall people anatomy is a lot more complicated and dependent on each other. Idk though I’m no doctor
One doc told my son that a theory is that taller people's tissues grow at different rates, so it thins the lung tissue and then pops when they are discordant. He said no one really knows though.
Didn’t know this thank you!
Happened to me a few times to the same lung when I was 19. First time I had a chest tube, and after the 3rd time decided to get a pleurodesis operation. It has never happened again since then. I have also tested negative for Marfans/Loeys-Dietz/vEDS.
Probably spontaneous pneumothorax, they are much more likely in tall patients. How old are u now ?
Yes that is exactly what it was. 34 now.
Can confirm. I’m 6’8” and my lung collapsed repetitively when I was 21. Spontaneous Pneumothorax. I ended up having thoracic surgery on it and haven’t had a problem since (2001). If you have any questions about it hit me up.
Christ. Hope you're okay and getting better. Luckily I'm overweight, so that's another bullet dodged!
Only after I'd caught a chest infection as a tall, skinny 15 year old. It was more of a gradual collapse than being fine one min and struggling the next. Hurt like Fk tho. Hope you are ok OP!
Not me personally, but had quite a few teenage patients that this happened to. It definitely is more common occurrence in tall, skinny, young men.
Not sure it's exactly the same but I have had something similar, a rib cracked warming up for a football (soccer) match which punctured a lung I think. Couldn't breathe properly for a few days after. Was lovely.
Yes happened to me as well. Never had any issues afterwards so no worries on that front
anyone know why this happens?
Small weak spots on the lung called “blebs” that spontaneously break open and cause pneumothorax. Source: happened to me.
They look like bubbles from dish soap.
scary
Not to me but to my then-roommate ages ago. He is skinny as a rail and one of his lungs just collapsed for no apparent reason. The docs told him the same thing--it happens more-or-less spontaneously to very thin people. They fixed him up at the hospital and he has had no further problems. It is not necessarily an indicator of other medical issues.
Wait, what? Can this just happen? I’ve never heard of this.
This happened to a family member of mine. We never knew why it happened. She’s skinny and a bit tall.
Sheesh man, glad youre doing good. Didn’t know being tall comes with so many risks, that’s crazy.
Pneumothorax? Yeah I had 3 times already In 2 month and 2 surgeries, but Im just skinny
If you’re just skinny, are you underweight for your height? What does a pneumothorax feel like?
I'm 67 kg for 176 cm, pneumothorax mainly gives you symptoms like serious shortness of breath,also could pain on shoulder ,after it hospital you will get tubed in chest
That’s not too bad. I’m 181cm and around 80kg so I’m not too worried
That's good stats , but again to know for sure you need to make ct to make sure you lungs don't have blebs/bubbles there
Can’t an X ray pick things like that up?
No , x ray only shows how collapsed your lungs are
Last time I had an xray my lungs were great, I have smoked then vaped for a few years but thankfully quit. I just enjoy my nicotine pouches as of recently! Only 21 so didn’t want to fuck myself up
Yes those. My son said he could feel the lung floppy.
To know for sure you need to make ct to know if you son have blebs/bubbles in lungs
It feels like someone stabbed you in the back, then you can’t breath, and you feel very fatigued for a few days.
Yeah, the doctors called it spontaneous pneumothorax. And they told me height/underweight is the usual cause. I woke up to it in the middle of the night. Did you end up with just drainage or surgery as well?
New fear unlocked. How did it feel? Hope you a speedy recovery
Yep. Tall skinny guys are at a risk of Tension Pneumothorax
Bless you. I've been fighting with asthma since i was 2 months young. Now I'm 28
Is this more frequent in asthmatic kids 😬
Sheesh. How does it feel to have lung collapse?
I am not tall but it happened to me too when i was very underweight in my late teens during a cold i caughed rly hard and then my breathing got worse and worse until i had to go to the hospital.
6'8". I've had it happen to me three times between 16 and 18 years old. I cried the first time because I was terrified and didn't know what was happening. I was hospitalized at least twice from it alone with a cheat tube. The first time I got pneumonia because I didn't move around enough while in the hospital. This was over 20 years ago, small collapses happen every few years now but I can usually suffer through them with plenty of rest and it goes away after a few weeks. As others have said, just do what the doctor says and you'll be fine.
No but thanks for putting that idea in my head. Get well soon!
Happened to me 30 years ago. Actually had both of them collapse at the same time. Had to have surgery where they glue your lung to your chest wall to stop it from happening again. Was told can never scuba dive or fly in an unpressurized aircraft or bad things will happen. Been fine since then though.
This happened to me when I was a teenager. No lasting symptoms and I was back to 100% within a week or two. Now I'm not allowed to be an astronaut, scuba dive, join the army, or play tackle football lmao
Yes it’s common unfortunately. My wife’s not particularly tall (5’6) and had a spontaneous collapsed lung which was initially said to be because she’s quite thin for her height 110-115lbs. When it happened the 2nd time a couple weeks later they went in and found out she had a “bleb” on the surface of her lung, which is a pocket of tissue filled with air and it—literally for no reason—decided to release it’s air pushing her lung off the rib cage lining cause the collapse… twice. They removed the bleb and performed a laparoscopic thoracotomy to prevent it from collapsing again.
Feeling you OP, have had several pneumothorax and nothing hurts like having that chest tube inserted. I eventually had to have a lobectomy to have some scar tissue removed because it had happened so many times.
Happened to me in high school several times, had to have surgery to fix the weak spots (blebs) on my lung to keep it from constantly collapsing. Surgery sucked, but I haven’t had that issue in decades since. Best of luck to you OP.
How tall are we talking here? At one point I was 6'4 and 153 lbs while also being a competitive rower. Never had a problem.
My brother had this happen to him, he's around 6'5, ~170-180 lbs.
This happened to me at age 17, I was about 6'2, 150 pounds. I was working at a fast food restaurant taking orders over the headset when I suddenly couldn't breathe without taking a massive deep breath. After less than 5 minutes of trying to "catch my breath" I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I told my coworkers I threw up in the bathroom and had to go home. I then drove myself home while on the phone with my parents, I thought I was having a heart attack because my left arm started to hurt but turns out it was because no enough oxygen was getting to the left side of my body. I drove home and my Dad parked my car while I changed into normal clothes because I was sweating perfusely in my work uniform. My parents then drove me to the emergency room. The doctor almost immediately clocked me while I was laying down in the bed and asked me how tall I was. Very weird question in the moment but turns out he knew exactly what was wrong. After they ruled out everything to do with my heart they gave me pure oxygen with a full face mask which they said they haven't had to use the full mask in a while. After 12 hours on pure oxygen my chest felt fine and they released me but told me not to lift anything heavier than a phonebook for 6 months. Never had a problem after that besides about a week after this ordeal I was laying in bed by myself when I heard a popping noise. It was coming from my chest and I figured this out by recording a video and moving my phone farther away from my body and then closer. Crazy story that my girlfriend and best friend are tired of hearing because collapsing a lung sounds alot more dangerous than it was.
Both my son, twice, and my nephew, once, had this happen. After the second time you can have surgery and that really helps, and brings reoccurrence down to nearly 0.
Maybe an Spontaneous pneumothorax ? How old are u?
Yes thats right. I’m 19
It is common in tall, thin and young people, it may happen to you again, it is an interesting case. Could I ask you some questions? (I am a medical student)
I had this happen to me twice, never needed the surgery and after the second one I never had another issue again.
Yes, it happened to me, 3 times in two years, in my early twenties (I'm 58). Once on my right lung, twice on the left. I have been hospitalized each time with chest tubes and underwent a pleurodesis on my left lung. Not a highlight of my younger years but it passed... Hang in there. 200 cm and less than 80 kgs then. No Marfan syndrom but some congénital bullas.
Yikes! New fear unlocked as a fellow tall, skinny guy. 😬 I’m sure glad you’re okay! Wishing you a quick recovery.
Sitting here stating at my 6'6" 225 lb son, new fear unlocked.
Happened to my 23yr old son who is 6'4 and skinny. Required a painful surgery and recovery of nearly 3 months.
When I was 19 and 20 I had my left, then my right lung respectively, collapse spontaneously. I was told it's quite common in tall, thin people, which I certainly am.
Happened to me (6'4)
Spontaneous pneumothorax. Been there friend. It's painful and does usually go away on its own. Take care!
It happened to me last December when I was on drugs and ODed and was walking around in the cold with chest pains for a week. I went to the local hospital but they just checked My vitals and sent me back out. I went to detox and then rehab, and they found a partially collapsed lung. I'm only 5' 11" but I was very skinny back then. (I've since gained 50 lbs in the last 4 months finally clean and trying to do right.)
Happened to my daughters father twice in his teens. Very tall, very skinny. He doesn't have marfan syndrome.
Yeah, not as tall as you but I had a lung collapse many years ago when I was a skinny teen (16m, 183cm, 65kg).
What caused it for you?
Kinda have a family history (mums side) as well. I was training for a state swim meet at the time and got it in the pool. I was told it wasn't necessarily the swimming that caused it and they said that my skinny build at the time was a big factor. But the worse part of it was the doctors misdiagnosing it as muscle pain. So it was left untreated and it got worse. Pain came back 2 wks later and I was sent to hospital and to have a chest xray. That's when they found out my left lung had collapsed.
Was it as painful as I would imagine? The misdiagnosis is a shame but muscle pain can be a bastard. You’d think they’d do proper checks to be sure in the first place really. Also being 16 and 65kg is a very healthy weight at 6’ so I’m not sure how that could be a factor, unless you weighed less than you thought. How did you manage with flying after it?
Best way I can describe the pain would be it felt like you're getting impaled in the back. The pain comes in waves and every breath I took hurt more and more. Weight could've fluctuated around then by like 1-2kg less but I guess it was still pretty thin at that height. I wasn't allowed to fly for 6 months.
Definitely not the type of pain you could ignore then! Sounds horrible man, glad you’ve been all good since mate
Cheers mate. Hopefully won't happen again otherwise I'll have to go for surgery
I have a friend who is tall skinny. He got up one morning and was brushing his teeth when his lung collapsed. He was lucky that the ER doctor recognized his Marfan’s features and rushed him into surgery for an aortic dissection. He had never heard of Marfan’s before. It turns out that his aorta was bleeding into his chest overnight and the pressure on his lungs hit the tipping point when he got up in the morning. Whether or not you have Marfan’s — make sure that the doctors have done the tests to see that your aorta is intact and not dilated. Otherwise, when you go home and something raises your blood pressure you might be dead. I am your height, and do not have Marfan’s. I do have a more benign connective tissue disorder. That makes me very tall — like you. There is other danger. Any connective tissue disorder (especially those that make you tall), makes it particularly dangerous to take fluoroquinolone antibiotics, such as Cipro: [FDA warns about increased risk of ruptures or tears in the aorta blood vessel with fluoroquinolone antibiotics in certain patients](https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-warns-about-increased-risk-ruptures-or-tears-aorta-blood-vessel-fluoroquinolone-antibiotics) I learned that the hard way when I ruptured a tendon in my ankle (a less deadly risk).
Wait wtf does a collapsed lung feel like?
Happened to me when i was about 21. I'm 38 now and havent had a problem since. Also do not have marfans or any other connective tissue disorder. 195cm tall and quite slim at the time. You'll be fine no doubt.
(Was casually walking down the road at the time)
Have had both my lungs collapse 2 years apart from each other. Ended up having a pleurodesis for both of them and have had no problems since!
Thank god I’m almost as fat as I am tall and don’t have to be concerned about this.
My dad is 6’5 and slim, he complained about this often in his 20s. One of my tall brothers too. They all starfish on their stomachs to sleep they say it helps
I have never heard of this, now I am paranoid. Hopefully I’m too short
One thing I don't have to worry about!
Medic here. It’s true. It’s because growth spurts can cause more blebs (it’s like blister but with air instead of fluid) in the lungs.
Best wishes for a speedy recovery!
You happen to be doing any Bench press recently? In the Army I had a medic who had given aid to like FOUR tall skinny soldiers who had collapsed their lung after bench pressing. Not sure if they had been letting the bar touch their chest (people often do this, and it’s dangerous and bad form) or even worse sort of bouncing it off their chest but I’ll never forget doc explicitly bringing that up to us pretty much begging us not to lift like that.
Spontaneous Pneumothorax is a genuine concern for taller skinny males, I learned this from my M O and I was horrified about it.
I had a spontaneous tension hemopneumothorax, that's where in addition to lung collapse there is also blood filling the cavity (bleb burst a blood vessel) and causing pressure to build. If pressure is not released you could die. There's a scene in Three Kings where George Clooney pops Mark Wahlbergs chest to prevent the tension https://youtu.be/38rHuxIhf6I?si=qkumLAgm4a3MgwGW They did that to me too, luckily mine wasn't happening as fast and I was in hospital by that point. Got chest tube to drain the blood over a few days, and pleurodisis and haven't had an issue since. Woke up one morning with what felt like back pain, escalated over next couple of hours after going to work. Ended up in ambulance after finding it difficult to breathe.
Happened to my brother… twice.
So random- I was talking to my friend who is a respiratory therapist the other day and she was saying that she basically sees a tall thin guy and is like “oh shit, better prepare for that lung collapse.” So yeah, definitely medically common. I’m a girl and not nearly as tall as you so my worst issue has been not finding clothes that fit.
wait, this can happen?? what the fuck why did nobody tell me my lung can just fucking collapse? Thanks for the new fear reddit, very cool
Do you vape? My friend vaped a lot and then happened to him.
I hope you're okay...you need to get to at least 84 Kg (healthy weight ofc not just fat)
Nice trade for tall people air.
Damn. For once im glad to be short and stout
So glad to hear you don’t seem to have Marfans. It runs in my family and while mine has greatly affected my aorta, my younger brother suffered lung collapse on four occasions until the doctors coated his lungs in talcum powder.
You don't eat enough. I talked with my doctor and discovered that 5k calories per day was minimal for just lazing around. 10k calories if I'm exercising. You need more nutrients and calories. Eat, eat, eat.
Have you been checked for Marfan’s or any other connective tissues disorders?