Tuberculosis is a global disease with a high prevalence rate in the Philippines. Frank hemoptysis often occurs later in the disease and is usually not massive since the availability of anti-Koch’s treatment. However, Rasmussen’s aneurysm, a pulmonary vascular complication secondary to tuberculosis from the weakening of the pulmonary arterial wall adjacent or within a tuberculous cavity, can be an uncommon cause of massive and potentially fatal hemoptysis.

A 35-year-old male patient presented with episodes of hemoptysis while being treated for pulmonary tuberculosis for two weeks. An episode of massive hemoptysis of ~400ml prompted his admission. Chest tomography with contrast showed bronchiectatic changes, cavitary formation, and an aneurysmal dilatation of the anterior segmental artery of the left upper lobe. He was diagnosed with Rasmussen’s aneurysm. A multidisciplinary team consisting of pulmonologists, interventional radiologists and thoracic surgeons planned for a surgical intervention as coil embolization was deemed to be difficult due to the wide neck character of the aneurysm. On re-admission after patient optimization, repeat chest tomography showed interval regression of pulmonary cavity with thrombosis of the previously identified Rasmussen’s aneurysm. Patient completed his 6-month antitubercular treatment with no further episodes of hemoptysis.

In patients with tuberculosis, hemoptysis results from involvement of the parenchyma, bronchiectasis, or erosion of residual cavities. Hemoptysis from the rupture of a dilated vessel such as Rasmussen’s aneurysm is a rare cause. Chest tomography with contrast is the imaging modality of choice as it demonstrates the focal pulmonary artery dilatation. Embolization or surgical lobectomy are typically utilized to control the bleeding. However, treatment with anti-tuberculous regimen may result already in regression and eventual thrombosis of the aneurysm. Watchful monitoring is imperative as massive hemoptysis may recur; radiologists and surgeons must be available at any time in case intervention is required.

Chronic pulmonary aspergillosis (CPA) is a rare disease. It is usually diagnosed in immunocompromised patients with other chronic respiratory disorders. Diagnosis can be challenging due to non-specific symptoms. It is based on clinical, radiological, and microbiological criteria and excludes other causes of the symptoms. The outcomes of antifungal treatment may be unpredictable as optimal treatment duration has not yet been standardized. This is the case of a 74-year-old male who presented via teleconsultation with hemoptysis. GeneXpert for pulmonary tuberculosis was negative. Chest radiograph showed a cavitary lesion with an aspergilloma within. This led to a longstanding treatment effort with voriconazole, as he was a poor candidate for surgical resection due to the risk of post-operative complications. Three months into the treatment, the patient unexpectedly suffered from a severe episode of dyspnea, culminating in cardiac arrest. While the patient has been resuscitated with no residuals, it is only one of the many steps on his road to recovery and his second lease on life, this time coming to terms with his own preferences and values regarding his medical care. The patient showed clinical improvement and the promise of a cure in his fifth month of treatment. Learning points include the role of family physicians in a patient’s well-being even in specialized cases, the value of individualized care and the application of technology in hybrid consultation and monitoring.
Aspergillosis ; hemoptysis ; voriconazole

Objective: To summarize the clinical characteristics of bronchial-pulmonary artery fistula and evaluate the effect of interventional closure of bronchial-pulmonary artery fistula. Methods: A retrospective case study was conducted. Fifteen children with hemoptysis who were diagnosed with bronchial-pulmonary artery fistula in Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University from January 2018 to March 2022 were selected. Their clinical symptoms and chest-enhanced CT findings were recorded. The children who failed to improve after anti-infection and hemostasis treatment were treated with transcatheter embolization through microparticles under digital subtraction angiography (DSA). The efficacy and post-operation recurrence were evaluated. Results: There were 15 children, including 9 males and 6 females, aged 9.8 (3.7, 12.1) years, weighing 35 (16, 55) kg. There was hemoptysis of varying degrees before surgery. Only 2 children had decreased hemoglobin. Chest enhanced CT showed that their bronchial arteries were thickened and tortuous, including 11 cases of single vessel disease and 4 cases of multivessel disease; 11 children had varying degrees of pneumonia and 4 children had atelectasis. Except for one case effectively treated with medical therapy, the remaining 14 cases were all treated with transcatheter interventional closure with embolic microparticles, among whom 12 had their fistula completely blocked with a single operation and the other 2 children underwent multiple operations because of too many fistulas. One child had extensive bronchial-pulmonary artery fistula which failed to be blocked completely even after multiple operations. Among the remaining 13 children, only 2 patients whose fistula was considered to be completely closed had recurrence presenting with hemoptysis at 3 months and 2 years after the operation, and no hemoptysis was found after the second closure. All children were discharged without chest pain, spinal cord paraplegia, or other serious complications. Fourteen children were followed up for 1.4 (0.9,2.9) years, among whom one still has intermittent mild hemoptysis due to incomplete closure and the rest had a satisfactory outcome. Conclusions: Hemoptysis is the first symptom of bronchial-pulmonary artery fistula. For children with failed medical treatment, transcatheter closure with an embolic pellet is effective, safe and feasible, with a low recurrence rate.
Child ; Female ; Male ; Humans ; Pulmonary Artery ; Retrospective Studies ; Chest Pain ; Hemoptysis/therapy* ; Hospitals, Pediatric

Humans ; Hemoptysis ; Myocardial Infarction/therapy* ; Percutaneous Coronary Intervention/adverse effects* ; Treatment Outcome ; ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction

A boy, aged 11 years, was admitted due to intermittent fever for 15 days, cough for 10 days, and "hemoptysis" for 7 days. The boy had fever and cough with left neck pain 15 days ago, and antibiotic treatment was effective. During the course of disease, the boy developed massive "hemoptysis" which caused shock. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy revealed a left pyriform sinus fistula with continuous bleeding. In combination with neck and vascular imaging examination results, the boy was diagnosed with internal jugular vein injury and thrombosis due to congenital pyriform sinus fistula infection and neck abscess. The boy was improved after treatment with temperature-controlled radiofrequency ablation for the closure of pyriform sinus fistula, and no recurrence was observed during the follow-up for one year and six months. No reports of massive hemorrhage and shock due to pyriform sinus fistula infection were found in the searched literature, and this article summarizes the clinical features, diagnosis, and treatment of this boy, so as to provide a reference for the early diagnosis of such disease and the prevention and treatment of its complications.
Abscess/surgery* ; Cough ; Fever/complications* ; Fistula/surgery* ; Hemoptysis/complications* ; Humans ; Male ; Neck ; Shock

BACKGROUND: Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APS), an important cause of acquired thrombophilia, is diagnosed when vascular thrombosis or pregnancy morbidity occurs with persistently positive antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL). APS is a risk factor for unprovoked recurrence of pulmonary embolism (PE). Performing laboratory testing for aPL after a first unprovoked acute PE is controversial. We investigated if a specific phenotype existed in patients with unprovoked with acute PE, suggesting the need to evaluate them for APS. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed patients with PE and APS (n=24) and those with unprovoked PE with aPL negative (n=44), evaluated 2006–2016 at the Asan Medical Center. We compared patient demographics, clinical manifestations, laboratory findings, and radiological findings between the groups. RESULTS: On multivariate logistic regression analysis, two models of independent risk factors for APS-PE were suggested. Model I included hemoptysis (odds ratio [OR], 12.897; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.025–162.343), low PE severity index (OR, 0.948; 95% CI, 0.917–0.979), and activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT; OR, 1.166; 95% CI, 1.040–1.307). Model II included age (OR, 0.930; 95% CI, 0.893–0.969) and aPTT (OR, 1.104; 95% CI, 1.000–1.217). CONCLUSION: We conclude that patients with first unprovoked PE with hemoptysis and are age <40; have a low pulmonary embolism severity index, especially in risk class I–II; and/or prolonged aPTT (above 75th percentile of the reference interval), should be suspected of having APS, and undergo laboratory testing for aPL.
Antibodies, Antiphospholipid* ; Antiphospholipid Syndrome* ; Chungcheongnam-do ; Demography ; Hemoptysis ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Partial Thromboplastin Time ; Phenotype* ; Pregnancy ; Pulmonary Embolism* ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Thrombophilia ; Thrombosis

Aged ; Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation ; methods ; Female ; Hemoptysis ; pathology ; surgery ; Humans ; Silicones ; chemistry ; Stents ; Trachea ; pathology ; surgery

A girl was diagnosed with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG)-resistant Kawasaki disease (KD) due to pyrexia and hemoptysis for eight days. The girl was a school-age child with major clinical manifestations of pyrexia, skin rash, enlargement of bilateral cervical lymph nodes, conjunctival hyperaemia, red and cracked lips and strawberry-like tongue, followed by swelling of both hands and feet. Laboratory examination showed significant increases in white blood cell count, platelet count, C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate and liver enzymes, a significant reduction in albumin, and the presence of aseptic pyuria. After the first course of IVIG treatment, the girl still had recurrent pyrexia, with hemoptysis on day 2 after admission, and lung CT showed uneven luminance and patchy shadow. The symptoms were quickly alleviated after the second course of IVIG treatment combined with methylprednisolone and aspirin treatment. KD is a febrile disease characterized by multiple systemic vasculitis in childhood and can involve various organ systems such as the heart, lungs, kidneys and the nervous system. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully monitor and recognize the rare symptoms of KD, and early recognition of pulmonary complications of KD can avoid delay in diagnosis, prevent the development of more serious complications, and help with early treatment and disease recovery.
Blood Sedimentation ; Child ; Female ; Fever ; Hemoptysis ; Humans ; Immunoglobulins, Intravenous ; Mucocutaneous Lymph Node Syndrome

Horace N. Allen, an American physician, was a Presbyterian missionary to Korea. In 1886, he wrote the annual report of the Korean government hospital, summarizing patient statistics according to outpatient and inpatient classification for the first ever in Korean history. In the report, he speculated that hemoptysis cases of outpatient might have been mainly caused by distoma. Allen’s conjecture was noteworthy because only a few years lapsed since the first scientific report of paragonimiasis. However, he was not sure of his assumption either because it was not evidently supported by proper microscopic or post-mortem examinations. In this letter, we thus revisit his assumption with our parasitological data recently obtained from Joseon period mummies.
Autopsy ; Classification ; Hemoptysis ; Humans ; Inpatients ; Korea ; Missionaries ; Mummies ; Outpatients ; Paragonimiasis ; Prevalence ; Protestantism

Pancreaticopleural fistula (PPF) is a rare complication in patients with pancreatitis. Its symptoms are similar to those of empyema or pleural effusion; therefore, it is important to consider PPF in the differential diagnosis. Herein, we describe the diagnosis and treatment of PPF in a patient presenting with unusual empyema and delayed hemoptysis.
Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Empyema ; Fistula ; Hemoptysis ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Pancreatitis ; Pleural Diseases ; Pleural Effusion ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted ; Thoracoscopy