Images in Cardiothoracic Medicine and Surgery
Mounier-Kuhn syndrome: a rare and dangerous condition
Asian Cardiovascular & Thoracic Annals 21(3) 369 ß The Author(s) 2012 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0218492312450166 aan.sagepub.com
Francesco Monaco and Mario Barone
Figure 1. Computed tomography scan of the chest showing a diverticulum.
Figure 2. Bronchoscopic view of the tracheocele.
An 84-year-old woman with repeated episodes of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease over the last few months, with cough, laryngeal stridor, and dyspnea, underwent a computed tomography scan of the neck and thorax. It revealed the presence of a diverticulum (Figure 1). Bronchoscopy revealed additional elements of tracheocele: a pseudocystic lesion at the level of the cervical trachea on the right posterolateral side (Figure 2). The lesion had a broad collar and simulated a false tracheal lumen filled with mucous fluid. The association of tracheal diverticulosis, bronchiectasis, and repeated infections of the lower respiratory tract
is called Mounier-Kuhn syndrome. Given the advanced age of the patient and underlying disease, we opted for conservative management. Funding This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commerical, or not-for-profit sectors.
Conflicts of interest statement None declared.
Thoracic Surgery Division, University Hospital Policlinico ‘‘G. Martino’’, Messina, Italy Corresponding author: Francesco Monaco, MD, U.O.C. di Chirurgia Toracica, Policlinico Universitario ‘‘G.Martino’’, University of Messina, Messina 98168, Italy. Email: [email protected]
Downloaded from aan.sagepub.com at UNIV OF CONNECTICUT on June 10, 2015
Mounier-Kuhn syndrome: a rare and dangerous condition
Asian Cardiovascular & Thoracic Annals 21(3) 369 ß The Author(s) 2012 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0218492312450166 aan.sagepub.com
Francesco Monaco and Mario Barone
Figure 1. Computed tomography scan of the chest showing a diverticulum.
Figure 2. Bronchoscopic view of the tracheocele.
An 84-year-old woman with repeated episodes of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease over the last few months, with cough, laryngeal stridor, and dyspnea, underwent a computed tomography scan of the neck and thorax. It revealed the presence of a diverticulum (Figure 1). Bronchoscopy revealed additional elements of tracheocele: a pseudocystic lesion at the level of the cervical trachea on the right posterolateral side (Figure 2). The lesion had a broad collar and simulated a false tracheal lumen filled with mucous fluid. The association of tracheal diverticulosis, bronchiectasis, and repeated infections of the lower respiratory tract
is called Mounier-Kuhn syndrome. Given the advanced age of the patient and underlying disease, we opted for conservative management. Funding This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commerical, or not-for-profit sectors.
Conflicts of interest statement None declared.
Thoracic Surgery Division, University Hospital Policlinico ‘‘G. Martino’’, Messina, Italy Corresponding author: Francesco Monaco, MD, U.O.C. di Chirurgia Toracica, Policlinico Universitario ‘‘G.Martino’’, University of Messina, Messina 98168, Italy. Email: [email protected]
Downloaded from aan.sagepub.com at UNIV OF CONNECTICUT on June 10, 2015
