Desquamative interstitial pneumonia with a remarkable increase in the number of BAL eosinophils.
A 57-year old man with desquamative interstitial pneumonia (DIP) showed a marked increase in eosinophils in the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid. The patient was referred to our hospital for abnormal shadows on his chest X-ray with no symptoms in May 2007. Computed tomography (CT) showed patchy, peripheral predominate ground-glass opacity. The BAL fluid revealed an increase of the total number of cells, including markedly elevated levels of eosinophils (62.1%), in contrast with only a slight increase of peripheral blood eosinophils, or minimal eosinophils in the alveolar spaces and interstitium of the thoracoscopic lung biopsy specimen. Since the specimens showed findings compatible with a DIP pattern, we diagnosed the patient with DIP. Although it is a rare entity, we should therefore consider DIP in the differential diagnosis when we encounter patients with a marked increase in the number of BAL eosinophils.
Ishiguro
Takashi
T
Department of Respiratory Medicine, Saitama Cardiovascular and Respiratory Center, Kumagaya. ishiguro@med3.m.kanazawa-u.ac.jp
Takayanagi
Noboru
N
Kurashima
Kazuyoshi
K
Matsushita
Aya
A
Harasawa
Keiji
K
Yoneda
Koichiro
K
Tsuchiya
Noriko
N
Miyahara
Yousuke
Y
Yamaguchi
Shozaburo
S
Yano
Ryozo
R
Tokunaga
Daidou
D
Saito
Hiroo
H
Ubukata
Mikio
M
Yanagisawa
Tsutomu
T
Sugita
Yutaka
Y
Kawabata
Yoshinori
Y
D001706:Biopsy; D001992:Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004804:Eosinophils / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000473:pathology; D017563:Lung Diseases, Interstitial / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011657:Pulmonary Eosinophilia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*