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Updated: Aug 6, 2026

International Expert Consensus and Recommendations for Neonatal Pneumothorax Ultrasound Diagnosis and Ultrasound-guided Thoracentesis Procedure
Published on: March 12, 2020
Risk factors of spontaneous pneumothorax in Kuwait
Adel K Ayed1, Samer Bazerbashi, Muneera Ben-Nakhi
1Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Kuwait University. adel@hsc.edu.kw
Objectives:
To determine the risk factors of spontaneous pneumothorax (SP) in Kuwait.
Subjects And Methods:
From January 2002 through December 2003, 254 consecutive cases with a diagnosis of SP were reviewed. Analyses of pneumothorax rates by age, sex, smoking, body mass index (BMI) and climatic conditions were evaluated.
Results:
Of the 254 patients, 242 (95%) were male and 12 (5%) were female; a larger proportion of 180 (88%) were Kuwaitis and 74 (12%) were expatriates. Two hundred and eight (82%) episodes were regarded as primary SP and 46 (18%) as secondary SP. The mean age was 24.5 +/- 5.8 years for primary SP and 45.7 +/- 14.5 years for secondary SP. One hundred and ninety-six (77%) individuals were current smokers. BMI in primary and secondary SP was 19.3 and 22.4, respectively (p < 0.001). There was no relationship between SP and climatic conditions (a rise or fall in temperature, humidity or atmospheric pressure). However, a slight increase in SP occurred in July, probably the hottest month in Kuwait.
Conclusions:
The data indicate that the most important risk factors of SP in Kuwait are smoking, low BMI and the male gender.
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