Pulmonary sequestration is a rare congenital condition. It is a dysplastic lung tissue with a separate systemic blood supply and without a bronchial tree connection. The emergence of a superimposed infection can lead to its diagnosis, such as Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Nocardia asteroids and Aspergillus sp pneumonia. Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) superimposed disease is exceedingly rare. We report a case of a man in his third decade without known medical disorders presenting with a persistent cough. After an extensive microbiological workup, an MAC infection was diagnosed. An elevated carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) was also noted. He was treated with antimycobacterial therapy and lobectomy resulting in clinical improvement and CA19-9 normalisation. This case illustrates the value of comprehensive microbiological investigations in patients with chronic respiratory symptoms and imaging findings that are not typical of bacterial pneumonia. Clinical studies remain needed to investigate the utility of CA 19-9 in a scoring system to guide MAC therapy.

We report two cases of pulmonary sequestration infected with nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM): Mycobacterium avium and Mycobacterium abscessus. Chest computed tomography showed pneumonic consolidation in the right lower lobe, which received a systemic blood supply from the descending aorta in both patients. Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgeries were successfully performed and pathological examinations revealed multiple caseating granulomas. A review of the literature revealed only seven previous case reports of pulmonary sequestration infected with NTM, and no case with Mycobacterium abscessus has been reported.

We present a case of congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation (CCAM) in a 25-year-old male who was presented with chronic cough. Chest radiography revealed an abnormal mass-like shadow in the right lower pulmonary zone. A contrast enhanced computed tomography showed an 11 cm solid, cystic mixed mass on the right lower lobe. A right lower lobectomy was performed by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery without complications. The gross specimen showed a massive cavitation with multiloculated cysts of varying size, consistent with CCAM, along with noticeable granulomatous inflammation. Non-tuberculosis mycobacteria were isolated from a bronchial wash specimen, and the resected tissue homogenates were positive for Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex by polymerase chain reaction.

The clinical, histologic, and radiographic presentations of nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) lung disease are usually indistinguishable from those of reactivated pulmonary tuberculosis (TB), so it remains a great challenge for the clinician to make treatment decisions for patients with old TB and a positive culture result for NTM. This study investigated whether the mycobacterial specific heat shock protein 65 (hsp65) and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB)-specific IS6110 gene would present in pulmonary lesions of patients with NTM pulmonary infection. Formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue blocks of 24 patients with NTM infections treated at the hospital from 1998 to 2008 were included. Mycobacterial hsp65 gene was amplified in 20 of the 24 patients, and the species identified by sequencing was consistent with corresponding culture results in 12 of these patients. MTB-specific IS6110 gene was detected in 3 of the 7 patients who had old TB and a subsequent diagnosis of fibrocavitary NTM lung disease. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis of hsp65 gene also confirmed the presence of MTB genes in 2 of these 3 patients. Our results indicate that PCR amplification and sequencing of the mycobacterial hsp65 gene is a sensitive assay for identification of NTM species in FFPE materials. However, consistent results of PCR analysis, microbiology study, histologic manifestations, radiology, and clinical presentation are important for correct diagnosis of NTM pulmonary infection. The presence of MTB gene in patients with fibrocavitary NTM lung lesions poses a clinical dilemma for deciding concurrent treatment TB and NTM infection.

An infant was referred to us for persistent cough and recurrent wheezing. Chest X-ray showed an abnormal shadow in the right lower lobe. A volumetric contrast-enhanced computerized tomography (CT) scan of the chest revealed an abnormal blood vessel extending from the descending aorta to the right lower lobe and anomalous venous drainage from the right lower lobe into inferior vena cava. Angiography confirmed the CT scan findings. Pulmonary sequestration associated with scimitar syndrome was subsequently diagnosed. Patient underwent right lower lobectomy and right inferior pulmonary vein was anastomosed into the left atrium. Pathological examination after surgery revealed epitheloid granuloma in the sequestrated lung parenchyma and mycobacteria in the draining lymph nodes. This is a rare case of pulmonary sequestration associated with scimitar syndrome and complicated by mycobacterial infection.

Mediastinal lung herniation is a rare condition characterized by protrusion of 1 lower lung through behind the heart into the opposite side of the chest, usually from right to left. We present a case of mediastinal lung herniation associated with pulmonary sequestration, which was confirmed both surgically and pathologically in a 13-year-old girl initially admitted with a diagnosis of pneumonia. Contrast-enhanced computed tomographic images using a multidetector-row computed tomography clearly demonstrated the right lung herniation toward the left and 2 aberrant systemic arteries supplying the sequestered lung mass. These arteries run through the herniated lung from right to left. Additionally, on the basis of pleural anatomy, we discuss herein the difference between a mediastinal lung herniation and horseshoe lung.