Endobronchial blocker use for massive, focal pulmonary hemorrhage during pulmonary endarterectomy for CTEPH.

Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) has a poor prognosis if left untreated but can be cured by pulmonary endarterectomy (PEA). Massive endobronchial pulmonary hemorrhage is a potentially fatal complication of PEA, occurring in 0.5%of patients. We describe the use of an endobronchial blocker (EBB) as an additional method to successfully treat massive, focal pulmonary hemorrhage during PEA.