Catamenial Pneumothorax: An Unusual Cause of Abdominal Pain

Abstract

A catamenial pneumothorax is a very rare condition resulting in spontaneous and recurrent pneumothoraces that occur in relationship with menses (T. Marjański et al., 2016). Although rare, emergency providers should consider this condition when female patients present to the emergency department with chest discomfort and dyspnea during menstruation. This case describes a patient who presented to the emergency department with abdominal pain who was incidentally found to have a catamenial pneumothorax on diagnostic imaging for her complaint of acute abdominal pain.