The Diagnosis of Old Gravel Aspiration in Adults by MDCT: A Case Report

ABSTRACT

We report a case of old gravel aspiration in a 57-year-old man who had been accidentally buried in a field of construction for ten hours, three years prior. A chest radiograph showed peribronchial pneumonic infiltrates in the right lower lobe, with a proximal ovoid radiopaque endobronchial density at the trunchus basalis. These findings were more clearly visualized on the 64-channel multidetector CT (MDCT). Moreover, the patient recovered from his condition, following a bronchoscopic retrieval. However, the patient had persistent bronchiectasis of the right lower lobe on a subsequent follow-up chest radiograph, one month later.