title: Endobronchial aspergilloma: report of 10 cases and literature review.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A retrospective investigation of the clinical and radiologic features as well as the bronchoscopic appearance was carried out in patients with endobronchial aspergilloma.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ten patients with endobronchial aspergilloma diagnosed by bronchoscopy and histological examination were identified at the Gyeongsang University Hospital of Korea, from May 2003 to May 2009.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The patients included 9 men and 1 woman, and the age of the patients ranged from 36 to 76 (median, 58 years). The associated diseases or conditions were: previous pulmonary tuberculosis in 7 patients, lung cancer in 2 patients, pulmonary resection in 1 patient, and foreign body of the bronchus in 1 patient. The chest radiologic finding showed fibrotic changes as a consequence of previous tuberculosis infection in 6 patients and a mass-like lesion in 2 patients. Two patients had a co-existing fungus ball, and an endobronchial lesion was suspected in only 2 patients on the CT scan. The bronchoscopic appearance was a whitish to yellow necrotic mass causing bronchial obstruction in 7 patients, foreign body with adjacent granulation tissue and whitish necrotic tissue in 1 patient, whitish necrotic tissue at an anastomosis site in 1 patient, and a protruding mass with whitish necrotic tissue in 1 patient.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  An endobronchial aspergilloma is a rare presentation of pulmonary aspergilosis and is usually incidentally found in immunocompetent patients with underlying lung disease. It usually appears as a necrotic mass causing bronchial obstruction on bronchoscopy and can be confirmed by biopsy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, Korea.
authors.forename: Jeong Eun
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Eun Young
authors.initials: EY
authors.lastname: Yun
authors.forename: You Eun
authors.initials: YE
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Gi Dong
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Yu Ji
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Yi Yeong
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Jeong
authors.forename: Kyoung-Nyeo
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Jeon
authors.forename: In Seok
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Jang
authors.forename: Ho Cheol
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Jong Deok
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Young Sil
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Hwang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001980:Bronchi / Q000473:pathology; D001995:Bronchography; D001999:Bronchoscopy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D055732:Pulmonary Aspergillosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D056910:Republic of Korea; D012189:Retrospective Studies