Although pneumonectomy is a technically simple procedure, it has been associated with a high (60%) incidence of complications. Respiratory complications account for approximately 15% of such complications. Worldwide, the mortality rate among patients subjected to pneumonectomy is 8.6%. However, the rate among patients developing respiratory complications is 30%. Although postpneumonectomy pulmonary edema is rare (occurring in 3% to 5% of cases), it is a serious complication and is almost always fatal. It was first described twenty years ago and, despite these alarming statistics, little is known regarding the physiopathology of postpneumonectomy pulmonary edema. Once it has become entrenched, the condition is difficult to treat, and there is no proven efficient treatment. Various risk factors have been correlated with postpneumonectomy pulmonary edema onset. Fluid overload was the first to be identified as a factor to avoid. However, many studies have shown that there is no direct correlation between fluid overload and the development of edema. Prevention is the best way to avoid postpneumonectomy pulmonary edema and must be performed in a multidisciplinary fashion, involving the entire medical staff - from the initiation of anesthesia through the surgical procedure and extending into the critical care management phase. Equally important is early identification and testing of patients at risk for postpneumonectomy pulmonary edema when there is clinical suspicion of this serious complication.

Keywords: Key Words: Pulmonary edema/complications. Pneumonectomy/adverse effects. Risk factors. Pulmonary edema/prevention & control.

Reexpansion pulmonary edema (RPE) is a rare, but frequently lethal, clinical entity. The precise pathophysiologic abnormalities associated with this disorder are still unknown: decreased surfactant levels and a pro-inflammatory status are putative mechanisms. Early diagnosis is crucial, since prognosis depends on early recognition and prompt treatment. Considering the high mortality rates related to RPE, preventive measures are still the best available strategy for patient handling. This review provides a brief overview of the pathophysiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of RPE, with practical recommendations for adequate intervention.

Objective: This study aimed to use high-resolution computed tomography scans of the chest to characterize the principal alterations occurring in cases of hydrostatic pulmonary edema. Methods: A retrospective analysis was made of the tomography scans of 15 patients presenting clinical profiles of hydrostatic pulmonary edema. The cases were divided into five groups by etiology: congestive heart failure (n = 7); acute mitral valve disease (n = 2); acute myocardial infarction (n = 2); myocarditis (n = 2); and fibrosing mediastinitis (n = 2). Results: The principal findings in the cases of hydrostatic pulmonary edema were ground-glass opacities (in 100%), interlobular septal thickening (in 100%), pleural effusion (in 87%) and peribronchovascular interstitial thickening (in 80%). Other, less common, findings were increased blood vessel diameter, consolidations and air-space nodules. Conclusion: The predominant pattern found in the patients studied was that of ground-glass opacities accompanied by interlobular septal thickening (mosaic attenuation pattern) and bilateral (predominantly right-sided) pleural effusion.

Keywords: Pulmonary edema; Tomography, X-ray computed; Lung diseases

Objective: To evaluate the need for post-pneumonectomy thoracic drainage. Methods: This was a retrospective study of 46 patients having undergone pneumonectomy in the Thoracic Surgery Department of the Londrina University Hospital between January of 1998 and December of 2004. Patients were divided into two groups: those having been submitted to drainage and those not having been. The diseases involved were lung cancer, bronchiectasis and tuberculosis. Results: Drainage was used in 21 patients, whereas no drainage was used in 25. The most common postoperative complication was subcutaneous emphysema (12 cases). Hospital stays were of shorter duration among patients who were not submitted to drainage than among those who were (mean, 6.5 days vs. 10.2 days). No serious postoperative complications were observed in the group of patients not submitted to drainage. Conclusion: The findings that evolutions were more favorable and hospital stays were shorter for the patients not submitted to drainage call into question the need for routine post-pneumonectomy drainage.

Keywords: Drainage; Pleural cavity; Pneumonectomy; Postoperative care; Postoperative complications; Retrospective studies

Negative-pressure pulmonary edema accompanied by hemorrhage as a manifestation of upper airway obstruction is an uncommon problem that is potentially life-threatening. The principal pathophysiological mechanism involved is the generation of markedly negative intrathoracic pressure, which leads to an increase in pulmonary vascular volume and pulmonary capillary transmural pressure, creating a risk of disruption of the alveolar-capillary membrane. We report the case of an adult male with diffuse alveolar hemorrhage following acute upper airway obstruction caused by the formation of a cervical and mediastinal abscess resulting from the insertion of a metallic tracheal stent. The patient was treated through drainage of the abscess, antibiotic therapy, and positive pressure mechanical ventilation. This article emphasizes the importance of including this entity in the differential diagnosis of acute lung injury after procedures involving upper airway instrumentation.

Keywords: Hemorrhage; Pulmonary edema; Airway obstruction; Abscess; Prostheses and implants.

Pulmonary siderosis is a rare cause of diffuse lung infiltration. This report describes the investigation of a patient with a micronodular pattern, where open-lung biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of pulmonary siderosis in a welder.

Keywords: Pulmonary siderosis. Micronodular pattern.

Pulmonary eosinophilia comprises a heterogeneous group of diseases defined by eosinophilia in pulmonary infiltrates (bronchoalveolar lavage fluid) or in tissue (lung biopsy specimens). Although the inflammatory infiltrate is composed of macrophages, lymphocytes, neutrophils and eosinophils, eosinophilia is an important marker for the diagnosis and treatment. Clinical and radiological presentations can include simple pulmonary eosinophilia, chronic eosinophilic pneumonia, acute eosinophilic pneumonia, allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis and pulmonary eosinophilia associated with a systemic disease, such as in Churg-Strauss syndrome and hypereosinophilic syndrome. Asthma is frequently concomitant and can be a prerequisite, as in allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis and Churg-Strauss syndrome. In diseases with systemic involvement, the skin, the heart and the nervous system are the most affected organs. The radiological presentation can be typical, or at least suggestive, of one of three types of pulmonary eosinophilia: chronic eosinophilic pneumonia, acute eosinophilic pneumonia and allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis. The etiology of pulmonary eosinophilia can be either primary (idiopathic) or secondary, due to known causes, such as drugs, parasites, fungal infection, mycobacterial infection, irradiation and toxins. Pulmonary eosinophilia can be also associated with diffuse lung diseases, connective tissue diseases and neoplasia.

Keywords: Pulmonary eosinophilia; Hypereosinophilic syndrome; Aspergillosis, allergic bronchopulmonary; Churg-Strauss syndrome.

Pulmonary artery dissection is a fatal complication of long-standing pulmonary hypertension, manifesting as acute, stabbing chest pain, progressive dyspnea, cardiogenic shock, or sudden death. Its incidence has been underestimated, and therapeutic options are still scarce. In patients with pulmonary hypertension, new chest pain, acute chest pain, or cardiogenic shock should raise the suspicion of pulmonary artery dissection, which can result in sudden death.

Keywords: Hypertension, pulmonary; Chest pain; Pulmonary artery.

Cryptococcosis is a systemic mycosis caused by two species of the encapsulated basidiomycetes, Cryptococcus neoformans and C. gattii, which, respectively, cause infection in immunocompromised individuals and in immunologically normal hosts. Patients with T-cell deficiencies are more susceptible to this infection. The spectrum of the disease ranges from asymptomatic pulmonary lesions to disseminated infection with meningoencephalitis. The medical relevance of cryptococcosis increased dramatically as a consequence of the AIDS epidemic and organ transplants.

Keywords: Cryptococcus neoformans; Pneumonia; Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome; Amphotericin B; Fluconazole.

We report the case of a 61-year-old male patient who underwent surgical excision of a lung mass for anatomopathological study. The patient had previously presented with fever, dry cough, and chest pain, together with lung masses detected by chest X-ray, and had undergone thoracotomy for diagnostic investigation on two occasions (1976 and 1981), although a conclusive diagnosis had not been made. A CT scan of the chest revealed large masses with areas of calcification in both lung fields. The anatomopathological study was consistent with pulmonary hyalinizing granuloma. In the postoperative period, the patient experienced several episodes of bronchospasm, which was reversible with the use of symptomatic medication. At this writing, the patient was receiving maintenance therapy with prednisone (40 mg/day) and had shown clinical improvement.

Keywords: Glucocorticoids; Mass chest X-ray; Granuloma.

The authors describe a case of pulmonary collapse by T. gondii, in a 57 year-old man. Diagnosis was made by serology after an exhaustive clinical radiological evaluation. The clinical variants of polymiositis and of the respiratory system collapse presented by the patient are discussed considering the small number of references to this entity in the Brazilian medical literature.

Tuberculosis is a disease of high incidence and prevalence in Brazil. Imaging methods can reveal signs suggestive of tuberculosis activity or sequelae. Chest radiographs can reveal active lung tuberculosis through consolidations, cavitations, interstitial patterns (nodular and reticulo-nodular), mediastinal or hilar lymphadenopathy and pleural effusions. Images compatible with the active disease, such as centrilobular nodules segmentarily distributed, thick-walled cavities, thickened bronchial or bronchiolar walls, bronchiectasis and lymphadenopathy can be observed by computerized tomography. Thin-walled cavities, traction bronchiectasis, parenchymal bands, emphysema and mosaic pattern are signs suggestive of inactive disease. Gallium-67 citrate scyntigraphy is a complementary method useful in the detection of infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, especially in immunocompromised patients. Inhalation / perfusion analyses are used in the pre-operative assessment of patients carrying tuberculosis sequelaes and multiresistant tuberculosis. Positron emission tomography with fluorine-18 labeled deoxyglucose allows the detection of the inflammatory process that takes place during the active stage of tuberculosis and may persist, not so intense, after specific treatment is over. Imaging methods are valuable tools to be used in the diagnosis and follow up of pulmonary tuberculosis.

Keywords: Tuberculosis. Radiography. Computed tomography. Scintigraphy. Emission-computed tomography.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension is classified as idiopathic or secondary (associated with collagenoses, heart disease, portal hypertension, pulmonary thromboembolism, and pulmonary vascular diseases). Pulmonary vasoreactivity should be tested in order to define the best treatment option. Of the many drugs that have been used to test pulmonary vasoreactivity, inhaled nitric oxide is the best choice, due to its specific pulmonary effect and very short half-life (5-10 s). The results of this test identify candidates for heart surgery among patients with congenital heart disease and candidates for the use of calcium antagonists among patients with other forms of pulmonary arterial hypertension. Performing and interpreting the results of such tests are a great responsibility, since mistakes can lead to incorrect treatment decisions, resulting in the death of patients.

Keywords: Hypertension, pulmonary/diagnosis; Nitric oxide/diagnostic use; Administration, inhalation.

Chronic necrotizing pulmonary aspergillosis is one of the forms of pulmonary aspergillosis typically found in mildly immunocompromised patients. We report the case of a female patient with complaints of chronic productive cough, fever and asthenia. She reported previous corticosteroid use. Computed tomography of the chest revealed consolidation with interposed cavitation in the right upper lobe. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy revealed purulent fluid within the tracheobronchial tree and an endobronchial exophytic lesion. The results of the biopsy of that lesion and the transbronchial biopsy were consistent with aspergillosis. Based on the clinical, radiological and histopathological findings, the patient was diagnosed with chronic necrotizing pulmonary aspergillosis. Treated with itraconazole, the patient presented a favorable clinical-radiological evolution.

Keywords: Aspergillosis; Lung diseases, fungal; Itraconazole. Resumo