[Therapeutic choices in spontaneous pneumothorax]

Questions of conservative and operative treatment are considered on the basis of studying 259 patients with spontaneous pneumothorax. In most of the patients the lung was spreaded by a single or permanent active aspiration of air from the pleural cavity. However, due to great amount of recurrences after the conservative treatment it should be more often followed by operative methods of treatment. Indications to operation are: failure of conservative spread of the lung, repeated collapse, recurrent pneumothoraxes and detection of subpleural bullas during thoracoscopy.