Emergency treatment of life-threatening spontaneous haematopneumothorax

We report two cases of spontaneous life-threatening haemopneumothorax, successfully treated by early thoracotomy. In the first patient no source of bleeding could be identified. The second patient presented bleeding from a torn vascular adhesion at the apex of the lung. The first patient benefited from early clot evacuation and in the second patient the bleeding could be controlled by electrocautery and a single suture of the bleeding vessel. These cases stress the need for early recognition and management of a potentially life-threatening event.