[Catamenial pneumothorax in a young patient diagnosed by thoracoscopic surgery; report of a case]
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Updated: Sep 26, 2026

Robotic-assisted Left Pneumonectomy For Vanishing Lung Syndrome
Published on: January 23, 2026
N Ishikawa1, M Takizawa, T Yachi
1Department of Thoracic Surgery, Ishikawa Prefectural Central Hospital, Kanazawa, Japan.
Abstract:
A 16-year-old woman presented with chest pain on 2 days before the onset of menstruation and was referred to our hospital because of a pneumothorax. She was diagnosed as spontaneous penumothorax and surgical treatment was performed. Thoracoscopy revealed the presence of multiple blueberry spots near central tendon of the diaphragm and little pleural effusion. No other abnormal lesions were found in the left pleural cavity and left lung. Thoracoscopic biopsy and coagulation of the lesions were successfully performed. Histological findings of biopsied specimen did not contradict as an endometoriosis and catamenial pneumothorax was diagnosed. CA 125 level of the pleural effusion had increased to 99.2 U/ml. Because she was young, she did not receive a systemic hormonal therapy.
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