Pleural And Chest Wall Disorders Practice Test

A 20-year-old man presents with acute-onset severe shortness of breath and left-sided chest pain. He is anxious and tachypneic with a respiratory rate of 28/min. A chest x-ray shows a large left-sided pneumothorax with a 4 cm distance between the lung margin and the chest wall and a slight mediastinal shift to the right.

A 72-year-old woman with a history of severe emphysema is brought to the emergency department with acute onset of severe dyspnea. Her oxygen saturation is 85% on room air. A chest x-ray confirms a large right-sided pneumothorax.