Role of bronchoscopy and imaging in long-standing foreign body bronchus presenting as recurrent or non-resolving lower respiratory tract infection.

INTRODUCTION: A long-standing retained foreign body in the bronchus is unusual. In majority of cases, an adequate history is not obtained, the clinical picture is usually clouded by superadded pathological changes. CASE SERIES: We report three cases of long-standing foreign body in the airway who presented with recurrent lower respiratory tract infection. Examination of respiratory system revealed no significant abnormality. Chest radiograph was normal. CT scan of the chest was useful to indicate endobronchial opacity in the airway suggestive of a foreign body. The patients underwent rigid bronchoscopy under general anesthesia for successful removal of the foreign body. CONCLUSION: So the patients with non-resolving or recurrent lower respiratory symptoms in spite of medical treatment and without any obstructive findings must undergo diagnostic bronchoscopy evaluation and imaging.

Respiratory epithelial adenomatoid hamartoma: a diagnostic challenge in sinonasal lesions.

Respiratory epithelial adenomatoid hamartoma (REAH) is a rare lesion in nasal cavity first reported by Wenig and Heffner in 1995. Most commonly seen in men in third to ninth decade of life. Majority of cases presents as a polypoidal mass in one or both nasal cavities. We experienced such a case of REAH originating from the nasal septum, in posterior aspect, treated by endoscopic approach. It is important to differentiate REAH from other sinonasal pathologies like inverted papilloma and low grade sinonasal adenocarcinoma. Complete surgical resection is the treatment of choice.