Surgery of Broncholithiasis -3 cases report-

기관지 결석의 수술치험 3례

Broncholithiasis is defined as a condition in which calcified material is present within the bronchial lumen. It is a rare but troublesome disease that can cause life-threatening complications such as massive fatal hemoptysis. Therefore, pulmonary resection is frequently required to remove the broncholiths and irreversibly damaged parenchyma. We experienced 3 cases of broncholithiasis. In one case, a 36 year old female patient suffered from coughing, massive hemoptysis with lithoptysis caused by intrinsic obstructive broncholiths in the right middle and lower lobe. In the 2nd case, a 41 year old male patient complained of long-standing blood tinged sputum and frequent pneumonic symptoms for 10 months because of extrinsic broncholithiasis where the calcified peribronchial lymph node eroded into the bronchial lumen of the right lower lobe. The remaining case involved a 30 year old female patient who complained of intermittent blood-tinged sputum induced by intrabronchial broncholith in the orifice of the right middle lobe bronchus. Two patients underwent bilobectomy(right middle and lower lobe) for removal of the broncholiths, damaged bronchi and parenchyma. The other patient was treated with right middle lobectomy and stone removal by bronchotomy of bronchus intermedius. In all patients, the post-operative course was uneventful.