Obstructive lung disease secondary to compression of the bronchus by an enlarged pulmonary artery

Abstract

In clinical practice, the presence of wheezing generally indicates an airway disease. In rare circumstances, adjacent mediastinal structures may compress the tracheobronchial tree leading to obstructive physiology. Compression of the tracheobronchial region by an enlarged pulmonary artery (PA) is exceedingly rare. We present here a case of pulmonary hypertension, where the enlarged PA resulted in obstructive lung physiology with a relevant review of the literature.

Keywords

• bronchial compression
• intrathoracic obstruction
• obstructive lung disease
• pulmonary artery dilatation
• pulmonary hypertension