An uncommon cause of hemoptysis: aortobronchial fistula

Abstract

Background: Hemoptysis is a frequent sign of respiratory and non-respiratory diseases. While in most cases the underlying cause is rapidly identified, sometimes the real etiology might be misdiagnosed with dramatic delay in treatment. Case presentation: A 46-year-old man with hiatal hernia and a history of aortic surgery for aortic coarctation presented with dramatic episodes of hemoptysis and subsequent severe anemia (6,9 g/dl). Digestive and respiratory endoscopy resulted not exhaustive, thus he underwent a contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) scan of the chest that showed an aneurysmal dilatation of the descending thoracic aorta with suspected aortobronchial fistula. He underwent cardiac surgery that confirmed the diagnosis and successfully treated the fistula. Conclusion: We briefly review the literature to raise clinical awareness on this uncommon cause of hemoptysis.