[Preoperative arterial embolization of intralobar lung sequestration]

Pulmonary sequestration in adult patients: a retrospective study

OBJECTIVES

Pulmonary sequestration (PS) is a rare congenital malformation. This study presents the characteristics of PS in adult patients, including pulmonary function and concurrent infection, which have not been well documented previously.

METHODS

Patients ≥16 years old with a discharge diagnosis of PS from Peking Union Medical College Hospital between January 1990 and December 2013 were retrospectively analysed. Age, sex, clinical symptoms, chest computed tomography (CT) results, results of pulmonary function tests, diagnostic methods, type and localization of sequestration, origin of arterial supply, complications due to infection and treatment information were retrieved from hospital records and analysed.

RESULTS

Seventy-two patients were included in this study (mean age 36.6 ± 11.8 years). Clinical symptoms included cough, expectoration, haemoptysis, intermittent fever and chest pain. The most common CT findings were soft tissue opacity, cystic lesion, cavitary lesion and bronchiectasis. Intralobar and extralobar sequestrations were present in 92.8 and 7.2% of the patients, respectively. PS located in the left lower lobe was 2.1 times more frequent than that in the right lower lobe. PS was diagnosed by computed tomography angiography (CTA) in only 37.5% of patients; the remaining patients were undiagnosed before surgery. Obstructive ventilation dysfunction was found in 8.8% of patients. Pulmonary aspergillosis was detected in 9.7% of patients, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa was the leading pathogen (as determined by tissue cultures). PS was resected via thoracotomy in 87.0% of patients and via video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) in 13.0%.

CONCLUSIONS

PS is a rare disease, and missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis are very common in PS patients. CTA and other angiography techniques should be used when there is suspicion of PS. Some PS patients have mild to moderate derangement of pulmonary ventilation, and PS might be associated with concurrent aspergillosis. VATS and posterolateral thoracotomy are both feasible methods for PS resection.

Lung sequestration: a rare cause for pulmonary symptoms in adulthood

BACKGROUND

Lung sequestration is a rare congenital pulmonary disorder and is usually diagnosed in children with recurrent pulmonary infections. Lung sequestrations are not commonly found to be a cause of respiratory symptoms in adults.

OBJECTIVES

It was the aim of this study to show that pulmonary sequestration is rare in advanced age and can be accompanied by severe pulmonary symptoms.

METHODS

We conducted a case series analysis of patient characteristics, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of 11 adults with a lung sequestration at the Thoraxklinik Heidelberg between 2001 and 2009.

RESULTS

From 2001 to 2009, intralobar lung sequestration was diagnosed and treated in 11 adults aged 19 to 58 years with an average age of 39.9 ± 11.3 years and a male:female distribution of 5:6. In 3 patients (27.3%), the predominant symptom was hemoptysis. Recurrent pulmonary infections occurred in 1 patient (9.1%); pneumonia and lung abscess were detected in 2 patients (18.2%). In 3 cases (27.3%), dry cough was the predominant symptom, and in only 2 cases (18.2%), lung sequestration was asymptomatic. Eight patients (72.7%) were diagnosed by imaging techniques prior to surgery. In 3 cases (27.3%), diagnosis was made intraoperatively and by pathological examination. Surgical intervention included 7 lobectomies (63.6%), 3 wedge resections (27.3%) and 1 (9.1%) segmentectomy.

CONCLUSION

Lung sequestration in adults is rare, but it can cause severe pulmonary symptoms. In cases of recurrent pulmonary infections of identical localization or recurrent hemoptysis, lung sequestration should be considered in order for the diagnosis to be made rapidly. Surgical resection is the treatment of choice.