Pulmonary Agenesis - A Zebra Like Disorder for Pulmonologists

Abstract

Pulmonary agenesis is an extremely rare congenital anomaly defined as a complete absence of the lung parenchyma, bronchus, and pulmonary vessels. In case of complete unilateral agenesis, no pleural cavity can be found on the affected side. More than 50% of children with lung aplasia die within five years of birth but some individuals live a normal life span with their deformity and may be asymptomatic throughout life. Respiratory tract infections are the greatest danger in these individuals. We report a case of left lung aplasia with bronchiectasis in a young-aged adult who was treated for tuberculosis and was referred to our institute for persistent cough.

Keywords

• lung agenesis
• aplasia
• hypoplasia