Table 17.

Complications of chest tube insertion

Insertion-related complication		Malposition of tube Hemothorax Lung injury Diaphragm injury Injury to mediastinal structures Injury to abdominal organs
Infectious complications		Chest tube site infection Empyema Necrotising chest wall infection
Mechanical complications		Tube dislodgement/kinking/occlusion Arrhythmias Phrenic nerve palsy Horner’s syndrome
Miscellaneous		Pain Subcutaneous emphysema Re-expansion pulmonary oedema Chest wall arterio-venous fistula