What happens after chest tube is removed?

For most people, the pain goes away after about 2 weeks. You will have a bandage taped over the wound. Your doctor will remove the bandage and examine the wound in about 2 days. It will take about 3 to 4 weeks for your incision to heal completely.

What should I monitor after chest tube removal?

Nursing care after chest-tube removal includes: • ongoing respiratory assessment • vital-sign documentation • monitoring the site for drainage • assessing the patient’s comfort level.

What are potential complications related to chest tubes?

In general, chest tube complications are categorized as insertional, positional or infective. More specifically, pain, vascular injury, improper positioning of the tube, inadvertent tube removal, postremoval complications, longer hospital stays, empyema and pneumonia have been reported in up to 30% of cases.

What is the most common complication associated with the use of chest tubes?

Common complications of chest tube placement are malpositioning and empyema; more unusual complications include organ rupture and problems arising after removal, such as recurrent pneumothorax and tension pneumothorax.

What is a mediastinal chest tube?

Mediastinal chest drains (including pericardial drains) are inserted as standard postoperative practice following cardiac surgery to assist the clearance of blood from the pericardial space. To prevent chest tubes from blocking and causing tamponade nurses manipulate them to prevent clots.

Can removal of chest tube cause pneumothorax?

Recurrent pneumothorax The dreaded complication following chest tube removal is the recurrence of a previously resolved pneumothorax. A recurrent pneumothorax can be associated with premature TT removal (i.e., before full lung re-expansion), an occult air leak, or air entering the pleural space during removal.

What nursing care is needed after chest tube removal?

Keep your incision covered with a bandage for 48 hours after your chest tube is removed, unless the bandage gets wet. If it gets wet, change the bandage as soon as possible. After 48 hours, if you don’t have any drainage, you can remove the bandage and keep your incision uncovered.

What is the difference between a pleural chest tube and a mediastinal chest tube?

chest tubes commonly are placed to remove air and fluid from the pleural space, thereby restoring normal negative pressures. Mediastinal chest tubes (less common) are inserted after open-heart surgery to allow evacuation of residual blood and fluids.

Where do mediastinal chest tubes go?

Chest tubes drain blood, fluid, or air from around your lungs, heart, or esophagus. The tube around your lung is placed between your ribs and into the space between the inner lining and the outer lining of your chest cavity. This is called the pleural space. It is done to allow your lungs to fully expand.

What is a residual pneumothorax?

Residual pneumothorax may result in spite of correct pleural drainage after lobectomy, segmental or wedge resection. This is due to persistent alveolar or bronchiolar air fistula particularly often in combination with a discrepancy between the size of the pleural cavity and the remaining lung tissue as in bilobectomy.

What are the complications of chest drain?

Further, the article deals with the most common complications of chest drainage, namely prolonged air leak, multifactorial lung oedemas, atrial fibrillation and empyema of the chest cavity.