Rescue therapy using an endobronchial valve and digital air leak monitoring in Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis

Abstract

In this case report, we describe the utilisation of two recently developed technologies for the successful management of a persistent air leak (PAL) in a critically ill patient in whom cardiothoracic surgical intervention was not possible. We report the case of a young leukaemic woman with a PAL complicating Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis (IPA), who was effectively managed using an Endobronchial Valve, supplemented by objective, digital air leak data provided by a Thopaz® device (Medela, Switzerland).

Keywords

• Pneumothorax
• Aspergillosis
• Bronchoscopy
• Immunosuppression
• Pulmonary fungal infections
• Critical care