Zdravniški Vestnik (Nov 2006)
Pulmonary hamartoma
Abstract
Background: Hamartomas are the most common benign neoplasms of the lung. The population incidence is 2.5/1000. In most cases the diagnosis is based on computed tomography (CT) and fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB). In this report we reviewed cases of pulmonary hamartoma seen at Golnik Hospital and studied the diagnostic and therapeutic procedures used in each case.Methods: 35 cases diagnosed as pulmonary hamartoma at Golnik Hospital in the last eight years were studied. We reviewed medical records of 30 patients who were hospitalized. We also reviewed the cytologic smears of 31 patients.Results: There were 21 females and 14 males, the average age was 60.5 years, the average size of hamartoma was 21.7 mm. For diagnosing hamartoma we used CT and FNAB in 16 (45.7 %) patients, only FNAB in 15 (42.9 %) and only CT in 4 (11.4 %) patients. Cytologic smears of all 31patients contained chondroid substance or mature cartilage, fibromyxoid material was present in 29 (93.5 %), adipose cells or tissue in 24 (77.4 %) and cuboidal cells in 28 (90.3 %) specimens. Over this period 6 (17.1 %) patients underwent surgery, the definitive histologic diagnosis in all cases was hamartoma.Conclusions: In some cases of pulmonary hamartoma the definitive diagnosis can be made only by CT without invasive diagnostic procedures. Many times CT does not yield a definitive diagnosis and in these cases we recommend transthoracic FNAB.
