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Updated: Aug 8, 2026

Systematic Bronchoscopy: the Four Landmarks Approach
Published on: June 23, 2023
Bronchoesophageal fistulae secondary to tuberculosis
F L Lado Lado1, A Golpe Gómez, A Cabarcos Ortíz de Barrón
1Department of Internal Medicine, Clinical University Hospital, Santiago de Compostela, La Coruña, Spain. mesec@usc.es
Abstract:
An elderly patient with a bronchoesophageal fistula secondary to tuberculosis and a 3-month history of cough and dysphagia worsening with deglutition was admitted to hospital. Radiological examination and CT of the thorax revealed mediastinal adenopathy. Bronchoscopy, esophagoscopy and esophagraphy confirmed the presence of a bronchoesophageal fistula. Histological examination of the esophagus and bronchial biopsy specimens revealed nonnecrotic granulomas, and the acid-fast bacilli tested positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis in respiratory secretions. Antituberculous treatment was started after diagnosis of intrathoracic lymph node tuberculosis with bronchoesophageal fistulization. A month and a half after initiating treatment, paroxistic coughing during deglutition persisted. An esophagoscopy was performed, and the orifice was closed with a fibrin tissue. After 9 months of treatment, the patient was asymptomatic and in good health.
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