Spontaneous pneumomediastinum in diabetic ketoacidosis: A case series of 10 patients

Dear editor, Spontaneous pneumomediastinum (SPM, also known as Hamman's syndrome) is an uncommon finding. SPM is induced without any comorbidities and is secondary to underlying factors, such as smoke, asthma, esophageal rupture, or labor and delivery.[1,2] The frequency of idiopathic pneumomediastinum is 1 of 32,000 hospitalized persons.[3] Awareness of SPM and appropriate examination play a key role in the early diagnosis and intervention for SPM to avoid potentially serious complications. SPM in diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) has been described in several case reports.[4-6] However, most data are described from isolated cases, and these cases have varying clinical symptoms. This study presents a case series of ten patients diagnosed with SPM complicating DKA to assess their characteristics, treatment, and prognosis.