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What would cause your lungs to collapse?

24 Apr, 2023 by Dane Raynor

Our lungs are incredibly important organs, seemingly carrying out an essential task without our even paying them any attention. However, just like in relationships where things go so well for a while then suddenly go downhill fast, it turns out that the lungs can also just give up and stop functioning correctly. There are several reasons why this might happen to you – some more bizarre than others.

Collapsing Without Warning

The collapse of your lung (also known as pneumothorax) often comes with little warning- just like when your ex calls unexpectedly out of the blue! Some people have no noticeable symptoms until their lung has completely collapsed (talk about sneaky!). The sudden sensation of intense pain is generally how most patients recognize something wrong.

A Blunt Trauma

Let’s say you participate in some extreme sport or work at a job where physical activity is expected; there’s always the possibility that something could accidentally hit you hard enough to cause injury: falling off a bicycle or taking part in backflips may seem cool until your oxygen container bursts- ouch! Taking blunt trauma straight to the chest area can cause immediate damage to one or both lungs.

Ripping Through the Lung Wall

Under normal circumstances, air only enters into our bodies via our mouths and nose when we breathe. Sometimes Air leakage starts to become trapped between layers surrounding each individual lung resulting in those layers separating from each other, thereby creating irregular pockets within which air accumulates pushing down on healthy tissue putting pressure on it impeding its ability to work normally..

Spontaneous Pneumothorax

This condition arises all by itself without being caused externally I know right? It’s not frequent but primarily occurs amongst young men over six feet tall who habitually smoke cigarettes and people with collagen vascular disorders (well start calling out guys because they definitely don’t want to start experiencing this unexplained misfortune). The condition accounts for up to 75% of primary pneumothoraces.

Bursting Lung Blisters

A bubble on the lung (also known as a pulmonary bleb) is an air-filled sac that grows upon your lungs. Sometimes, these bubbles are very tiny, while in other cases they can become quite massive (just picture yourself with something the size of two adult fists inside you.. umm not cool right?) Eventually, due to contusion or physical activity which involves strenuous activities like diving and mountain climbing, These blebs may burst causing small pockets throughout the body surrounding lung tissues where gas has been accumulated that wasn’t previously there—this isn’t just extremely painful – it’s a medical emergency!

Tall individuals Are At Risk

You’ve probably already seen references to tall men at increase risk levels but too shallow chests could also cause more issues during breathing 1 .

Conclusion: Keeping Your Lungs Healthy

Surely you wouldn’t want your lungs giving out just when you need them most! There are certain things we should all do if we’re sane enough to keep our lovely organs healthy:

  • Smoking isn’t only unhealthy; it is dangerous especially for people predisposed before exposing themselves.
  • Regular check-ups help catch any disorders early.
  • Always protect oneself when participating in risky activities like mountain-climbing/hiking/biking/diving etcetera
  • Reaching heights might trigger air pressing down on one’s chest cavity which makes oxygen less available hence increasing risks.

We hope going through this piece was entertaining and educational at the same time. Keep being safe and healthy!

1: Takhar Rumi M, Desai HJ. Pulmonary Function Testing. [Updated 2020 Oct 22]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2021 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430767/

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