Fax +41 61 306 12 34 E-Mail karger@karger.ch www.karger.com Novel Insights from Clinical Practice Respiration 2012;83:554–558 DOI: 10.1159/000334698 In-Flight Spontaneous Pneumothorax: Congenital Cystic Adenomatoid Malformation of the Lung Karan Madan Gella Vishwanath Navneet Singh Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, India neous pneumothorax during flight was the presenting man- ifestation of CCAM of the lung in a previously healthy and asymptomatic young adult. We also discuss the physiologi- cal changes during air travel which contribute to the patho- genesis of respiratory complications during air travel. Copyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel Introduction Congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation (CCAM), also known as congenital pulmonary airway malformation (CPAM), is an uncommon developmental Key Words Air travel  Spontaneous pneumothorax  Congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation Abstract Congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation (CCAM) is a rare congenital abnormality. Symptomatic presentation in adult life is extremely uncommon. The usual radiological ap- pearance of CCAM is a cystic space-occupying lesion. Pa- tients with underlying cystic lung disease can develop in- flight complications because of pressure-volume changes during ascent. We report the first ever case in which sponta- Received: October 3, 2011 Accepted after revision: October 24, 2011 Published online: January 5, 2012 Assist. Prof. Dr. Navneet Singh, MD, DM Department of Pulmonary Medicine Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) Sector 12, Chandigarh 160012 (India) Tel. +91 172 275 6826, E-Mail navneetchd  @  yahoo.com © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel 0025–7931/12/0836–0554$38.00/0 Accessible online at: www.karger.com/res Established Facts • Congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation is a rare congenital lung abnormality which usually presents with symptoms in newborns. • Symptomatic presentation of congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation in adult life is extremely rare. Novel Insights • Patients with congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation and patients with other forms of cystic lung disease can develop spontaneous pneumothorax during air travel.