Massive hemoptysis following Rasmussen's aneurysm: a case report

Rasmussen's aneurysm (RA) is a pseudoaneurysm of a pulmonary artery (AP), adjacent to or within a tuberculous cavity, appearing in 5% of these lesions. Its rupture might provoke massive hemoptysis (MH) with a near 50% mortality. The aim of this article is to report a case of massive hemoptysis following Rasmussen's aneurysm. 52-year-old man with recent history of hospita-lization due to pneumonia associated to influenza A and decompensated hyperthyroidism, pre-sents outpatient chest radiograph with signs of hyperinflation and scarring apical opacities, the patient returned to the hospital due to sharp pain of left hemi thorax during inspiration accom-panied with bloody sputum, asthenia and non-quantified weight loss. He evolves to frank MH, requiring endotracheal intubation managed in the intensive care unit (ICU). Chest computed tomography (CT) reported ground-glass opacity, nodules with a tendency to cavitation, tree-in-bud pattern in agreement with inflammation and infection, active TB is considered, and truncus of PA with vascular lesion suggestive of aneurysm dependent on pulmonary circulation, possibly RA. Fibrobronchoscopy reported signs of old and recent bleeding of left bronchial tree, probably of the lingula, blood clots in right bronchial tree. Molecular study and TB cultures was negative. Endovascular procedure with arteriography was carried out, revealing amputation of left distal segmental PA carrying the pseudoaneurysm with complete regression, discarding embolization RA It must be considered among the differential diagnoses of MH, especially on patients with pulmonary TB complications, such as the reported case. Due to its associated increased morta-lity, once RA is identified, it must be either endovascularly or surgically eradicated.

Dieulafoy's disease of the bronchial tree: a case report / Doença de Dieulafoy da árvore brônquica: relato de caso

ABSTRACT CONTEXT: Dieulafoy's disease of the bronchial tree is a very rare condition. Few cases have been reported in the literature. It can be asymptomatic or manifest with massive hemoptysis. This disease should be considered among heavy smokers when recurrent massive hemoptysis is present amid otherwise normal findings. The treatment can be arterial embolization or surgical intervention. CASE REPORT: A 16-year-old girl was admitted to the emergency department due to hemoptysis with an unknown lesion in the bronchi. She had suffered massive hemoptysis and respiratory failure one week before admission. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy revealed a lesion in the bronchus of the right lower lobe, which was suspected to be a Dieulafoy lesion. Segmentectomy of the right lower lobe and excision of the lesion was carried out. The outcome for this patient was excellent. CONCLUSION: Dieulafoy's disease is a rare vascular anomaly and it is extremely rare in the bronchial tree. In bronchial Dieulafoy's disease, selective embolization has been suggested as a method for cessation of bleeding. Nevertheless, standard anatomical lung resection is a safe and curative alternative.

RESUMO CONTEXTO: A doença de Dieulafoy da árvore brônquica é uma condição muito rara, poucos casos foram descritos na literatura. Pode ser assintomática ou manifestar-se com hemoptise maciça. Esta doença deve ser considerada em fumadores pesados quando eles têm recorrentes hemoptises maciças sem outros achados anormais. O tratamento pode ser tanto embolização arterial como intervenção cirúrgica. RELATO DE CASO: Uma menina de 16 anos foi admitida no Serviço de Urgências devido a hemoptise com uma lesão nos brônquios de origem desconhecida. Havia sofrido hemoptise maciça e insuficiência respiratória uma semana antes da admissão. A broncoscopia de fibra óptica relevou lesão no brônquio do lobo inferior direito, com suspeita de ser lesão de Dieulafoy. Foi realizada uma segmentectomia do lobo inferior direito com excisão da lesão. O resultado da paciente foi excelente. CONCLUSÃO: A doença de Dieulafoy é uma anomalia vascular rara, sendo extremamente rara na árvore brônquica. Na doença de Dieulafoy bronquial, embolização seletiva tem sido sugerida como método para cessação do sangramento; no entanto, a habitual resseção anatômica do pulmão é uma alternativa segura e curativa.

Radiological Findings and Outcomes of Bronchial Artery Embolization in Cryptogenic Hemoptysis

Management of cryptogenic massive hemoptysis is difficult, and conservative treatment may be inadequate to stop the hemorrhage. Surgery is not a reasonable option because there is no underlying identifiable pathology. This study aimed to investigate the radiologic findings and bronchial artery embolization outcomes in cryptogenic hemoptysis, and to compare the results with non-cryptogenic hemoptysis. We evaluated 26 patients with cryptogenic hemoptysis and 152 patients with non-cryptogenic hemoptysis. A comparison of the bronchial artery abnormalities between the cryptogenic and non-cryptogenic hemoptysis groups showed that only extravasation was more statistically significant in the cryptogenic hemoptysis group than in the non-cryptogenic hemoptysis group, while the other bronchial artery abnormalities, such as bronchial artery dilatation, hypervascularity, and bronchial-to-pulmonary shunting, showed no significant difference between groups. Involvement of the non-bronchial systemic artery was significantly greater in the non-cryptogenic hemoptysis group than in the cryptogenic hemoptysis group. While 69.2% of patients with cryptogenic hemoptysis also had hypervascularity in the contralateral bronchial arteries and/or ipsilateral bronchial artery branches other than the bleeding lobar branches, this finding was not detected in non-cryptogenic hemoptysis. Embolization was performed on all patients using polyvinyl alcohol particles of 355-500 microm. Hemoptysis ceased in all patients immediately after embolization. While recurrence of hemoptysis showed no statistically significant difference between the cryptogenic and non-cryptogenic hemoptysis groups, it was mild in cryptogenic hemoptysis in contrast to mostly severe in non-cryptogenic hemoptysis. Transarterial embolization is a safe and effective technique to manage cryptogenic hemoptysis.

Pulmonary varices - rare cause of haemoptysis

Haemoptysis has a long list of causes, but pulmonary varices are amongst the rare causes. Pulmonary varices are rare abnormalities of pulmonary veins that may exist either as an isolated malformation or in association with pulmonary venous hypertension. This case report describes pulmonary varices as a cause of hemoptysis in an adolescent boy, which was diagnosed on multislice CT and confirmed on angiography

Massive haemoptysis controlled by bronchial artery embolisation: a case report.

Massive haemoptysis results in a high rate of mortality and morbidity. It is infrequently seen in children. Medical and surgical interventions are not very effective in controlling torrential bleeding. Therefore, newer modalities like bronchial artery embolisation are found to be promising in life threatening situations in both adults and children.