Ecg phasic voltage changes associated with spontaneous pneumothorax in a patient with vanishing lung syndrome

Abstract

Alternating or phasic ECG voltage changes are most commonly associated with intrinsic myocardial electrophysiological perturbations or mechanical oscillation within a pericardial effusion. Rare descriptions of electrical alternation have been reported with pneumothorax. We present a case of a 53-year-old woman with vanishing lung syndrome who presented with spontaneous left pneumothorax and phasic ECG voltage changes that resolved after re-expansion of the lung.