A strange case of foreign body embolism in the right lower pulmonary artery

• DOI: 10.1007/s11748-020-01570-5
• Publication Date: 2021-01-05T08:03:21Z
• Authors: Angelo Paolo Ciar...; Anna Mariantonia ...; Alessio Campisi; Sara Mazzarra; Desideria Argnani; Stefano Congiu; Stefano Sanna; Franco Stella
• Keywords: Hemoptysis; Embolism; Case Report; Pulmonary Artery; Foreign body; Nonthrombotic pulmonary embolism; Pulmonary artery; Foreign Bodies; 3. Good health; 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; Humans; Pulmonary Embolism; Lung

Foreign bodies in the pulmonary circulation have been documented in the literature, with almost all cases being iatrogenic, involving venous catheters, or due to penetrating foreign body emboli. Foreign body pulmonary emboli are often difficult to diagnose due to their varied clinical presentation, the nature of the embolizing material and dubious radiological features. We describe the case of a patient who experienced episodes of massive hemoptysis with inconclusive radiological findings, who underwent a thoracotomy with the discovery of a wooden object of 7 cm in length in the right lower lobe artery, with no apparent mechanism of injury.