Congenital bronchitis

The disease of bronchitis is mainly caused by failure to pay attention to the protection of the bronchi, which leads to bronchial infection. It will not be passed on to the next generation, so congenital bronchitis is relatively rare. Regarding the issue of congenital defects in babies, it is recommended that everyone should check the genetic cause and understand the symptoms of bronchitis.

Congenital bronchial dysplasia is less common and is caused by congenital defects or genetic diseases that prevent the periphery of the lung from further development, leading to dilatation of the developed bronchi, such as bronchial chondrodysplasia (Williams-Camplen syndrome).

Clinically, the disease is often manifested by cough, sputum, and hemoptysis. When combined with infection, there may be fever. When the airway is blocked by secretions, there may be symptoms such as chest tightness and difficulty breathing. When the patient does not have hemoptysis or infection, the main treatment is postural drainage and expectoration. Co-infection often requires antibiotic treatment, usually cephalosporins, penicillins and quinolones. When combined with hemoptysis, different treatment methods should be selected according to the amount of hemoptysis. In case of small amount of hemoptysis, hemostatic drugs can be used. Commonly used drugs are posterior pituitary hormone, procaine, etc. For large amount of and repeated hemoptysis, interventional treatment to embolize the bleeding blood vessels is often used. Patients with combined airway obstruction often require fiberoptic bronchoscopy to remove sputum to relieve the obstruction. However, it should be noted that fiberoptic bronchoscopy should be performed with caution when combined with hemoptysis to prevent recurrence of hemoptysis due to suction of blood clots on the surface of the bleeding vessels.

What are the tests for bronchiectasis?

1. Hypoxemia

When the infection is obvious, the white blood cell count increases and the nucleus shifts to the left. The sputum has a foul odor and pathogenic bacteria can be seen by culture. Bacteriological examination for drug sensitivity, sweat test for cystic fibrosis, serum immunoglobulin measurement (B lymphocytes), lymphocyte count and skin test (T lymphocytes), white blood cell count and classification (phagocytes), complement component measurement (CH50, C3, C4).

2. Pulmonary function test

The forced expiratory volume in one second/forced vital capacity ratio indicates progressive lung function impairment, manifested as obstructive ventilation disorder, decreased FEV1, FEV1/FVC, and PEF. Residual volume/total lung volume ratio The percentage of residual air to total lung volume increases. Hypoxemia may occur in the later stages.

3. Chest X-ray

There may be no abnormality (accounting for 10%) or the lung texture may increase, become thicker, and have a disordered arrangement. Cystic bronchiectasis can be seen on chest X-rays as multiple irregular honeycomb-like (curly-like) shadows in the coarse lung texture, or round or oval transparent areas, and even small fluid levels, which are often seen near the lung base or hilum. Columnar bronchiectasis often manifests as a "track sign," where two parallel linear shadows (central transparent tubular shadows) appear in the increased texture.

4. Chest HRCT: CT examination

The ability to show bronchiectasis depends on the CT scanning method, the grade of bronchial dilatation and the type of bronchiectasis. CT is more reliable in diagnosing cystic bronchial dilatation than columnar bronchial dilatation. The CT manifestations of bronchiectasis are related to the type of bronchiectasis, the presence or absence of infection, and the presence or absence of mucus plugs in the lumen.

Nowadays, there are still many medical examination methods for bronchiectasis, such as pulmonary function tests, chest X-rays, chest CT scans, etc. These methods can help patients diagnose the disease. Therefore, if someone suspects that he or she has various diseases, he or she can go to a regular hospital for these examinations to help himself or herself detect and treat the disease early and recover soon.