What is the treatment and prognosis for pneumatocele?

Condition analysis:
Post-pneumonic pneumatocoeles tend to spontaneously resolve providing the infection is adequately treated with antibiotics.  Surgical intervention is only required if the pneumatocoele causes symptoms because of mass-effect or if it ruptures into the pleural space resulting in pneumothorax.

Instructions:
Medical Care: Medical care for Pneumatocele is treatment of the underlying condition. In most circumstances, this involves administration of broad-spectrum antibiotics to treat the pneumonia. Therapy should be directed against the most common bacterial organisms in children, including S aureus and S pneumoniae.

Positive pressure ventilation can result in a sudden increase in size and tension of a pneumatocele. Therefore, careful monitoring is essential in patients receiving positive pressure ventilation when pneumatoceles have been documented.