Surgical treatment of spontaneous pneumothorax associated with lobal emphysema in a dog

A 3-year-old female Maltese dog was admitted with cough, dyspnea, and gasping. There was no sign of trauma in history taking. It was speculated that pneumothorax occurred in the right pleural space after X-ray examination. Thoracocentesis and chest tube were applied for 5 days. The symptoms of dyspnea and cough were, however, not relieved or recurred. Exploratory thoracotomy was considered to be the most appropriate approach. Spongiform and air-containing tissue was identified in the whole parenchyma in the right middle lobe. Total lobectomy was performed and then a chest tube was inserted. Atrophy of the right cranial lobe and collapse in the right caudal lobe were identified. In histopathological examination, loss of alveolar septa and dilated alveolar ducts were demonstrated. The patient showed no abnormal symptoms, and the X-ray examination showed no signs of recurrence after surgery. This report describes a rare spontaneous pneumothorax case which is associated with lobal emphysema in an adult dog, but not in puppies with congenital lobar emphysema.