Thoracic Lymphatic Disorders

Abstract

Thoracic complications of lymphatic disorders can culminate in respiratory failure and death and should be considered in any patient with a lymphatic disease and clinical or radiographic evidence of chest disease. Congenital lymphatic disorders are being increasingly recognized in the adult population. The spectrum of thoracic manifestations of lymphatic disorders ranges from incidental radiographic findings to diffuse lymphatic disease with respiratory failure. This article serves to review some recent advances that allow improved diagnosis and management of thoracic lymphatic disorders. Herein, we describe their anatomical and physiologic effects, the time course of their progression, and the therapies that are currently available. The management of malignant (cancerous) lymphatic disorders of the thorax is beyond the scope of this paper.

Utility of endobronchial ultrasound‐guided transbronchial needle aspiration in diagnosing non‐specific inflammatory intrathorcacic lymphadenitis

“…endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS), intrathoracic lymphadenopathy, non-specific inflammation, pathology, transbronchial needle aspiration (TBNA) 1 | I NTR ODU CTI ON Enlargement of mediastinal/hilar lymph nodes (LNs) can be caused by malignancies, and is more commonly associated with benign diseases. 1,2 Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) has emerged as a useful technique for evaluating medaistinal/hilar lymphadenopathy since invented, including diagnosing and staging of lung cancer, diagnosis of mediastinal malignancies as well as some specific benign diseases, such as sarcoidosis and tuberculosis (TB), because it is a minimally invasive procedure that is generally available, easy to use and with minimal additional costs. [3][4][5][6][7][8][9] Less is known, however, about the utility of EBUS-TBNA for diagnosing non-specific intrathoracic inflammatory lymphadenopathy.…”