Which action would indicate an air leak remains in the chest tube system?

• A. Clamp the chest tube
• B. Increase suction to maximum
• C. Milk the tubing
• D. Check for an air leak in the system and tubing connections

Answer: (D)

When a chest tube drainage system has an air leak, you’ll see signs that something isn’t sealed properly in the system. The best way to determine whether an air leak remains is to check for an air leak in the system and tubing connections. Inspect every joint and connection for looseness, cracks, or disconnections, and make sure the tubing and chest tube are secured and that the system remains below chest level. Continuous bubbling in the water-seal chamber often indicates an ongoing leak, and pinpointing a loose or disconnected connection helps locate the source. Other actions don’t reliably identify leaks and can be unsafe or ineffective: clamping the chest tube can provoke dangerous pressure changes, increasing suction to maximum doesn’t diagnose a leak and can cause harm, and milking the tubing is aimed at moving clots, not detecting leaks.