Summary

A young man with a history of smoking presented with acute-onset chest pain after lifting weights. He also noticed a change in his voice, tightness in his neck and difficulty breathing. A chest radiograph showed soft tissue emphysema in the neck. A CT scan of the chest revealed moderate amount of pneumomediastinum tracking into the neck and down to the diaphragm. He was haemodynamically stable and had no hypoxia or dysphagia. He was monitored for 48 hours and discharged home after resolution of his symptoms. A chest radiograph repeated after 6 weeks was normal.