title: Bilateral pneumothoraces from a malfunctioning resuscitation valve.
abstract: Disposable resuscitation valves appear as relatively simple devices used to ventilate patients during both emergent situations and transport from the operating room to the intensive care unit. We report a case of a nonfunctional disposable resuscitation valve that resulted in barotrauma and bilateral pneumothoraces. A routine check for proper function of these valves before use in critically ill patients may help to eliminate such cases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY.
authors.forename: D P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Myers
authors.forename: O A
authors.initials: OA
authors.lastname: de Leon-Casasola
authors.forename: D R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Bacon
authors.forename: W P
authors.initials: WP
authors.lastname: Slowik
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Lema
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001469:Barotrauma / Q000209:etiology*; D004209:Disposable Equipment; D004868:Equipment Failure; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011030:Pneumothorax / Q000209:etiology*; D012151:Resuscitation