VATS for congenital lobar emphysema: a case report

Congenital lobar emphysema (CLE) is a rare congenital lung disease consisting in overinflation of a pulmonary lobe. Adult onset of CLE is therefore unusual, often presented with mild symptoms. The authors report a very uncommon case of congenital segmental emphysema diagnosed in a 21-year-old non-smoking man because of recurrent right pneumothorax. Indication to pulmonary resection was established according to functional limitation, radiological findings of right upper lobe segmental emphysema with corresponding bronchial agenesia, scintigraphic result of extremely reduced ventilation and perfusion of lung emphysematous area and recurrency of pneumothorax. The intervention was carried out by 3-portal video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) using single-lung ventilation leading to determine precisely how much lung to resect thanks to the obvious and clear-cut distinction between functioning and non functioning parenchyma of the upper lobe. A stapler wedge resection by VATS was thus obtained, that, as far as the author's knowledge, it is the first case of endoscopic parenchymal sparing resection in CLE. Even though congenital lobar emphysema is rare, clinical awareness of this condition is important for early diagnosis and effective surgical treatment that in this case led to favourable