Endobronchial mucormycosis: A rare clinical entity diagnosed by endobronchial cryobiopsy

Awais Bajwa; Syed T Hussain; Houssein Youness; Ravi N Sawh; Lichao Zhao; Tony Abdo

doi:10.1016/j.rmcr.2022.101660

Endobronchial mucormycosis: A rare clinical entity diagnosed by endobronchial cryobiopsy

Respir Med Case Rep. 2022 May 3:37:101660. doi: 10.1016/j.rmcr.2022.101660. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Awais Bajwa¹, Syed T Hussain², Houssein Youness², Ravi N Sawh³, Lichao Zhao³, Tony Abdo²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medicine, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA.
² Section of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA.
³ Department of Pathology, Oklahoma City VA Health Care System, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA.

Abstract

Mucormycosis is a rare fungal infection caused by fungi of the order Mucorales. The rhino-cerebral form of mucormycosis is most commonly seen in patients with diabetes mellitus, whereas pulmonary mucormycosis is a rare manifestation in patients with hematological malignancy and transplant recipients. We report a case of a 40-year-old male, with history of poorly controlled diabetes, who presented to the emergency room with a one-week history of hemoptysis. Computed Tomography (CT) of the chest was concerning for a lung mass or abscess. Flexible bronchoscopy revealed an endobronchial lesion that was biopsied with a cryoprobe. Histopathologic examination showed non-septate right-angle branching hyphae, typical of mucormycosis. He underwent surgical resection of the right middle and lower lobes and treatment with antimycotic agents with a complete recovery. This case highlights the importance of early histopathological diagnosis of pulmonary mucormycosis in preventing a fatal outcome.

Keywords: Cryobiopsy; Diabetes mellitus; Endobronchial mass; Mucormycosis; Pneumonia.

Publication types

Case Reports