ArticleRespirology case reports2026
When Is It Safe to Fly? Early Air Travel After Small Traumatic Pneumothorax.
Article in Respirology case reports, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- When Is It Safe to Fly? Early Air Travel After Small Traumatic Pneumothorax.Respirology case reports · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Commercial air travel exposes passengers to reduced cabin pressures, causing intrathoracic gas volume to expand (Boyle's law). Guidelines recommend waiting 7-14 days after radiographic resolution of a pneumothorax before flying; however, such recommendations may not reflect emerging evidence for select cases. We report a case of a healthy 51-year-old man with a small (< 10%) traumatic pneumothorax who flew domestically and internationally within 4 and 9 days of diagnosis against medical advice. He remained asymptomatic, with serial chest X-rays indicating stability and eventual resolution of the pneumothorax. The patient demonstrated clinical and radiographic stability despite commercial cabin pressure changes and high-altitude activity. The presented case supports and extends a growing body of research, suggesting that patients with normal oxygen saturation on room air may safely tolerate air travel with a small, stable, traumatic pneumothorax. This case highlights the potential need for individualised risk assessment when advising travel delays.
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