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Empyema thoracis from an inhaled peanut
Laura Linehan1, John Hinchion, Terence M O'Connor
1Department of Respiratory Medicine, Mercy University Hospital, Cork, Ireland.
Abstract:
A 77-year-old man with a history of pulmonary sarcoidosis was referred with persistent cough and reduced air entry on auscultation of the right lung base. He was an ex-smoker with a 40-pack-year history and his general practitioner was concerned about the possibility of bronchogenic carcinoma. A chest radiograph showed a right-sided pleural effusion with right mid-zone airspace opacification. Bronchoscopy revealed a peanut covered in mucus lodged in the right lower lobe bronchus. CT of the thorax demonstrated a multiloculated right pleural effusion with associated compressive atelectasis, consistent with chronic empyema. A chest drain was inserted but failed to fully clear the collection and the patient proceeded to a thoracoscopic decortication of a pleural empyema secondary to the right lower lobe obstruction from an inhaled peanut. His postoperative recovery was uncomplicated.
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