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Lung recruitment maneuvers are rescue measures commonly used to improve oxygenation in severely hypoxemic patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), who fail to improve on standard treatment. After recruitment, appropriate level of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) is applied to prevent alveolar de-recruitment during expiration. Computed tomography scan of thorax and quasi-static pressure-volume curves have played a pivotal role are important in the assessment of recruitment, but they have several limitations. Lung ultrasound (LUS), which is now easily available in nearly every Intensive Care Unit, could be an attractive alternative method for assessing lung recruitment. It is noninvasive, easily repeatable and is devoid of radiation hazards. We are presenting a case of 24-year-old female patient with moderate ARDS in whom bedside LUS was successfully used into assessing lung recruitment as well as into determining the appropriate level of PEEP.

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INTRODUCTION: Upper airway imaging can often identify the anatomical risk factors for sleep apnea and provide sufficient insight into the pathophysiology of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a case-control, observational study at a tertiary care hospital in North India. All cases and controls underwent lateral cephalometry and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for craniofacial and upper airway evaluation. Only the cases had polysomnography testing for confirmation of OSA and assessing the severity of disease. RESULTS: Forty cases and an equal number of matched controls were recruited. On X-ray cephalometry, it was observed that the cases had a significantly larger hyoid mandibular distance and soft palate length; and shorter mandibular length. The MRI cephalometric variables were significantly different, the soft palate length, tongue length, and submental fat were longer while the retropalatal and retroglossal distance was shorter amongst the cases. A statistically significant positive correlation was found between the cephalometric parameters and the indices of severity of OSA. An increased hyoid mandibular distance and soft palate length, and a decrease in the lower anterior facial height were found to be predictive of severe OSA (Apnea-Hypopnea Index ->30/h). An increased hyoid mandibular distance, soft palate length, and the tongue length and a reduced mandibular length were found to be predictive of need for continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) pressures of ≥15 cm H2O. There were significant differences between the cephalometric parameters of the Indian OSA patients and patients from other ethnicities reported in the literature. CONCLUSIONS: OSA patients had a significantly smaller upper airway compared to age-, sex-, and body mass index-matched controls and cephalometric variables correlated with the indices of OSA severity. The cephalometric assessment was also predictive of severe OSA and the need for higher pressures of CPAP. This indicates the important role of upper airway anatomy in the pathogenesis of OSA.

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Endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) features have been shown to be useful in predicting etiology of enlarged malignant lymph nodes. However, there is dearth of evidence especially from developing countries. We assessed the EBUS characteristics across various mediastinal and hilar lymphadenopathies. In this prospective study, all patients with mediastinal and hilar lymphadenopathy on CT Chest and who were planned for EBUS-FNA (Fine Needle Aspiration) were included. EBUS features of lymph nodes studied were shape, size, margins, echogenicity, central hilar structure (CHS), coagulation necrosis sign and colour power doppler index (CPDI). These were scored and compared between benign and malignant lymphadenopathies. A total of 86 lymph nodes in 46 patients were prospectively studied of which 23 (26.7%) were malignant, 27 (31.3%) tuberculosis and 36 (41.8%) sarcoidosis. There was significant difference between malignant and benign lymph nodes in terms of CHS [central hilar structutre] (p=0.011), margins (p=0.036) and coagulation necrosis sign (p<0.001). On comparison of features of malignancy and tuberculosis, there were significant differences in margins (p=0.016) and coagulation necrosis sign (p 0.001). However, when malignancy and sarcoidosis was compared, there were differences in echogenicity (p=0.002), CHS (p=0.009) and coagulation necrosis sign (p<0.001). Only coagulation necrosis sign was found to be highly consistent with malignant lymph nodes. The other features cannot be used to distinguish malignant from benign lymph nodes, especially in a developing country like India where tuberculosis is a common cause of mediastinal lymphadenopathy.

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BACKGROUND: Peripheral pulmonary lesions (PPLs) pose a diagnostic challenge, and the optimal investigation in many such cases remains unclear. Computed tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous needle biopsy (CT-PNB) has been the modality of choice for such lesions with a high diagnostic accuracy but with high rates of pneumothorax. Endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) with a radial probe is an alternate diagnostic modality with increased diagnostic yield of bronchoscopy in the evaluation of PPL. We conducted a randomized controlled trial comparing the diagnostic accuracy and complication rates of radial EBUS with CT-guided lung biopsy for the evaluation of PPL. METHODS: Fifty patients with PPL surrounded by lung parenchyma on all sides were randomly assigned to either radial EBUS or CT-PNB group (25 each). RESULTS: Both groups had similar clinicoradiologic characteristics. The diagnostic accuracy of radial EBUS was comparable to CT-PNB with no statistically significant difference (72 vs. 84%; P = 0.306). However, the yield was significantly lower in right upper lobe lesions (20% vs. 83.3%; P = 0.03). CT-PNB group had significantly higher pneumothorax rates than radial EBUS (20% vs. 0%; P = 0.03). The lesions that were more than 2 cm, those with ultrasound feature of continuous hyperechoic margin around the lesion (P = 0.007), and the position of the ultrasound probe within the lesion (P < 0.001) were associated with a higher diagnostic yield with radial EBUS. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that radial EBUS is a safer investigation than CT-PNB with a comparable diagnostic accuracy for PPL not abutting the chest wall (CTRI/2017/02/007762).

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Primary malignant melanoma of the lung (PMML) is an extremely rare tumour with only sporadic case reports. We report the occurrence of PMML in a 58-year-old female. Although extremely rare, it must be considered in the differential diagnosis of bronchogenic carcinoma and a detailed systemic examination must be done to rule out any primary skin or eye involvement.

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Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumour (IMT) is a rare tumour affecting the tracheo-bronchial tree in the adult population. The clinical presentation of this tumour is diverse and diagnosis can be definitively clinched by histopathological examination. Treatment of this tumour usually requires surgical resection with bronchoscopic resection being described in few cases. We describe a 32 year old male presenting with hemoptysis who was diagnosed to have IMT. Resection of the tumour was done with the help of rigid bronchoscopy. Post-resection, hemoptysis stopped and no recurrence of tumour was noted on subsequent follow-up. We also present a systematic review of literature of all the cases of tracheo-bronchial IMT treated with bronchoscopic resection and conclude it to be a useful alternative to surgery in such cases.