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LETTER TO THE EDITOR |
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Year : 2012 | Volume
: 5
| Issue : 2 | Page : 166-167 |
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Incidental tracheo-bronchial calcification
Amit Agrawal1, Saginela Satish Kumar2, K Raghu2, Surya P Singh1
1 Department of Neurosurgery, Narayana Medical College Hospital, Chinthareddypalem, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, India 2 Department of Emergency Medicine, Narayana Medical College Hospital, Chinthareddypalem, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, India
Date of Web Publication | 10-Nov-2012 |
Correspondence Address: Amit Agrawal Professor of Neurosurgery, Department of Neurosurgery, Narayana Medical College Hospital, Chinthareddypalem, Nellore - 524003, Andhra Pradesh India
Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/0975-2870.103353
How to cite this article: Agrawal A, Kumar SS, Raghu K, Singh SP. Incidental tracheo-bronchial calcification. Med J DY Patil Univ 2012;5:166-7 |
Sir,
Incidental detection of tracheobronchial abnormalities on routine imaging and familiarity with their appearances is important to improve diagnosis and patient care. [1] A 65-year-old female patient was admitted with a diagnosis of left fronto-parietal intracerebral hematoma. She was not a known diabetic and hypertensive. Her chest X-ray showed extensive calcification of trachea and main bronchus [Figure 1]. Blood investigations were normal. The patient required tracheostomy and it could be done without complications. Blood investigations including serum calcium were within normal range. She made uneventful recovery. Diffuse tracheobronchial calcification observed on plain chest radiographs is said to be a result of aging. [2] Diffuse tracheobronchial calcification at radiography most commonly occurs in patients of advanced age [3],[4] and is more frequent in females. [2] In a series of 1152 patients, extensive tracheobronchial calcification was identified in 0.87% of X-rays. [5] Rare causes of focal tracheobronchial cartilage calcification include congenital, [6] following cardiac surgery in children, [7] in patients with hypercalcaemia and hyperphosphataemia, [8] chondrodysplasia punctata, adrenogenital syndrome, diastrophic dysplasia [9] and in patients with long term warfarin therapy. [10] With the greater use of computed tomography (CT) scan and its more sensitivity to recognize even small amount of calcification is expected to show a higher prevalence of tracheal calcifications. [11] As was seen in the present case and also described in literature that this finding is often striking and visually remarkable; however, but is of no clinical significance. [3],[5] | Figure 1: X-ray appearance of extensive calcifi cation of the trachea and bronchus in an elderly female
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References | | |
1. | Marom EM, Goodman PC, McAdams HP. Diffuse abnormalities of the trachea and main bronchi. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2001;176:713-7. [PUBMED] |
2. | Fraser RG, Pare P, Pare J, Fraser R. Differential diagnosis of diseases of the chest. Saunders; 1991. |
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6. | Mlynarski FG, Parnes SM, Polanski S. Congenital calcification of the larynx and trachea. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 1985;93:99-101. [PUBMED] |
7. | Rifkin MD, Pritzker HA. Tracheobronchial cartilage calcification in children. Case reports and review of the literature. Br J Radiol 1984;57:293-6. [PUBMED] |
8. | Onitsuka H, Hirose N, Wantanabe K, Nishitani H, Kawahira K, Matsuura K, et al. Computed tomography of tracheopathia osteoplastica. AJR Am J Roentgenol 1983;140:268-70. |
9. | Moncada RM, Venta LA, Venta ER, Fareed J, Walenga JM, Messmore HL. Tracheal and bronchial cartilaginous rings: Warfarin sodium-induced calcification. Radiology 1992;184:437-9. [PUBMED] |
10. | Price PA, Faus SA, Williamson MK. Warfarin causes rapid calcification of the elastic lamellae in rat arteries and heart valves. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 1998;18:1400-7. [PUBMED] |
11. | Lloyd DC, Taylor PM. Calcification of the intrathoracic trachea demonstrated by computed tomography. Br J Radiol 1990;63:31- 2. [PUBMED] |
[Figure 1]
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