The Korean Journal of Critical Care Medicine  2011;26(4):272-275

doi:10.4266/kjccm.2011.26.4.272

Multiple Bilateral Perfusion Defects in the Infant with Acute Viral Bronchiolitis: A Case Report.

Woo Jin CHUNG 1 ; Jae Wook CHOI ; Young Ju HAN ; June Dong PARK

Affiliations

+expand

Keywords

acute viral bronchiolitis (AVB); perfusion defects; pulmonary blood flow

Country

Republic of Korea

Language

Korean

Abstract

Acute viral bronchiolitis (AVB) is an obstructive lung disease which frequently develops in infants and the most common functional involvement is a V/Q ratio change caused by small airway obstruction. We report a case showing the redistribution of pulmonary blood flow by multiple perfusion scan defects in an infant with AVB. A 15 month-old male infant visited ER due to respiratory difficulty. He manifested decreased lung sound in the left lung field, hyperinflation of the left lung on chest x-ray, and metabolic acidosis in blood gas analysis. A perfusion scan showed multiple perfusion defects of both lungs without the evidence of pulmonary embolism on a following cardiac CT and echocardiography. Human Rhinovirus PCR in a nasopharyngeal aspirate was positive. With supportive care, the symptom was resolved in 4 days. AVB can show multiple perfusion defects by the redistribution of pulmonary blood flow of which the direction is opposite to the usual distribution of pulmonary blood flow in children.