What does the hole in my lungs indicate?

Question

Hello doctor,

I have had a chronic cough for three months. I am worried as something is partially obscuring my airway. Why do I have holes in my lungs? I have a photo of this to show. The hole is tiny, approximately half a centimeter. Is this normal?

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com. I can understand your concern. According to your statement, you have been suffering from a cough for the last three months. You have recently undergone bronchoscopy, and you want to know about the arrow-marked hole of your bronchoscopy picture (attachment removed to protect the patient's identity). According to it, along with the main bronchus, the marked arrow portion may be accessory bronchi. If the marked arrow portion is accessory bronchi, it may be a normal variant. For further confirmation, you can undergo an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) of the lung or consult with the doctor who has done this bronchoscopic procedure. But for the history of chronic cough, CXR (chest x-ray) and HRCT (high-resolution computed tomography) of the chest can be done to exclude any respiratory causes. If you have not undergone those tests yet, then you should do for excluding the cause of the problem. Take care.

Answer 2

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com. Plastic bronchitis is a rare disorder in which lymphatic fluid cannot come from the lungs and develop branching bronchial casts that may obstruct the airways. The casts consist of mucus and various cellular elements that are soft and rubbery. The symptoms of Plastic bronchitis are chronic dry or wet cough and sometimes respiratory distress. Plastic bronchitis can be diagnosed with CAT scan (computed tomography) and DCMRL (dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance lymphangiography). DCMRL is a study that helps detect lymph leakage in the lungs. According to the pictures, the marked arrow portion may be accessory bronchi, and then it will be a normal variant (attachment removed to protect the patient's identity). But if the hole is derived from any pathological conditions, it may be the leakage area of lymph. White patches shown on the pictures may be mucus or other things like lymph or casts. As I have already mentioned, plastic bronchitis is a rare pulmonary condition, so without CAT Scan and DCMRL, it is challenging to predict or confirm any diagnosis. Again, in the case of lung function tests, it will show a restrictive pattern. Nothing is confirmed yet. So, do not be worried. And in the case of plastic bronchitis, treatments are available. Take care. Let me know if I can assist you further.