The treatment of typical carcinoid tumors in bronchus is usually done by a small pulmonary resection with or without bronchoplasty. The authors report the case of a patient with typical carcinoid tumor in the left lower lobar bronchus, next to the lobar carina. They performed a longitudinal bronchotomy, tumor resection, and suture of the bronchus, preserving the lung tissue. The patient is currently well, three years after surgery, without any evidence of recurrence in the bronchoscopic control.

Keywords: Bronchial carcinoid tumor. Bronchoplasty. Bronchotomy. Lung tissue. Surgery.

Objective: To analyze hospitalizations for respiratory diseases among children under 15 years of age in an area with high levels of environmental pollution. Methods: A cross-sectional study of hospitalizations due to respiratory diseases of patients residing in the city of Tangará da Serra, located in the state of Mato Grosso (Brazilian Amazon region), from 2000 to 2005. Data on hospital admissions were obtained from the Brazilian Unified Health Care System and from Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics population estimates. Results: In 2005, the rate of hospitalization for respiratory diseases among children under 15 years of age in the microregion of Tangará da Serra was 70.1/1,000 children. Between 2000 and 2005, there were 12,777 such admissions, of which 8,142 (63.7%) were for respiratory diseases. During the dry season (May to October), the rate of admissions for respiratory diseases was 10% higher than during the rainy season (November to April). The principal causes of admission included pneumonia (90.7%) and respiratory insufficiency (8.5%). Admissions of children under 5 years of age for pneumonia were 4 times the expected number for the city. Children under 12 months of age were the most frequently hospitalized, with an average increase of 32.4 admissions per 1,000 children per year. Conclusions: Tangará da Serra presented a high number of pediatric admissions for respiratory diseases. Therefore, it is logical to consider it a priority area for investigation and monitoring of the environmental risk factors for such diseases.

Keywords: Respiratory tract diseases; Pneumonia; Hospitalization; Climate; Air pollution/Brazil.

Carcinomatous lymphangitis accounts for approximately 8% of all cases of metastatic pulmonary tumors. The most common primary sites are breast, lung, stomach, prostate and pancreas. We describe herein the case of a 42-year-old woman in whom the first manifestation of an ovarian adenocarcinoma was carcinomatous lymphangitis of the lung, an unusual presentation of the disease.

Keywords: Lymphangitis; Lung neoplasms; Ovarian neoplasms; Lymphatic metastasis; Hypertension, pulmonary.

Tracheoesophageal fistula as a late complication of tracheostomy is rare and its incidence is less than 1%. Nonetheless, it should be known, diagnosed, and promptly treated in order to prevent an unfavorable evolution. The authors report on a 41-year-old female who had had tracheostomy a long time before, due to a cerebrovascular accident. Following hospital discharge, the patient presented acute respiratory insufficiency and it was observed that some material was secreted through the tracheostomy nasogastric probe. Tracheoesophageal fistula was endoscopically diagnosed, the patient was submitted to a tracheoplasty and showed good evolution.

Keywords: Tracheostomy. Tracheal tubes. Intubation. Tracheoesophageal fistula. Intensive care units.

Madelung's disease, or multiple symmetric lipomatosis, is a rare disease, characterized by accumulation of unencapsulated fat, generally located symmetrically around the neck and shoulders. Here, we present the case of a patient with diffuse lipomatosis accompanied by obstructive sleep apnea due to cervical involvement and facial deformity, which made it necessary to use nasal pillows for ventilation. The patient was hospitalized with a diagnosis of pneumonia and required noninvasive ventilation due to severe hypercapnia. A brief review of the literature was made, and we describe and discuss the investigation of this rare clinical case.

Keywords: Lipomatosis, multiple symmetrical; Sleep apnea, obstructive; Continuous positive airway pressure; Masks.

Some lung diseases are true diagnostic challenges due to their various clinical presentations. Actinomycosis is one such disease, potentially affecting various organs and systems. We report the case of a patient with pulmonary actinomycosis as a pseudotumor, which is usually only diagnosed by thoracotomy or thoracoscopy.

Keywords: Actinomycosis; Thoracic neoplasms; Bacterial infections and mycoses.

We report the case of a 58-year-old male patient who was referred for oncology consultation due to an epigastric mass that had been growing rapidly for three months. Diagnostic investigation revealed that the mass was a metastasis of stage IV lung adenocarcinoma. The patient received five cycles of chemotherapy with cisplatin and gemcitabine as a first-line treatment, which was interrupted due to major adverse events. Although the pulmonary disease stabilized, the cutaneous disease progressed. The patient then received pemetrexed as a second-line chemotherapy, together with concurrent external radiotherapy, which was well tolerated. There was complete remission of the epigastric mass. However, the patient died three months after the treatment. Here, we emphasize the importance of a multidisciplinary approach and of its role in individualizing the treatment.

Keywords: Lung neoplasms; Neoplasm metastasis; Antineoplastic combined chemotherapy protocols; Radiotherapy, computer-assisted.

Wegener's granulomatosis is a multisystemic inflammatory illness of unknown etiology, characterized by vasculitis of small and medium caliber vessels. The most common clinical manifestations involve the upper respiratory tract, lungs and kidneys. Common alterations in imaging studies include pulmonary opacities and bilateral multiple nodules, cavitations occurring in 50% of the cases. Treatment includes corticosteroids and immunosuppressants. We describe an atypical case of a 61-year-old man initially investigated due to suspicion of a unilateral lung tumor, which proved to be, in fact, a case of Wegener's granulomatosis.

Keywords: Wegener's Granulomatosis; Vasculitis; Diagnosis, differential; Lung neoplasms.

Lung volume recruitment involves deep inflation techniques to achieve maximum insufflation capacity in patients with respiratory muscle weakness, in order to increase peak cough flow, thus helping to maintain airway patency and improve ventilation. One of these techniques is air stacking, in which a manual resuscitator is used in order to inflate the lungs. Although intrathoracic pressures can rise considerably, there have been no reports of respiratory complications due to air stacking. However, reaching maximum insufflation capacity is not recommended in patients with known structural abnormalities of the lungs or chronic obstructive airway disease. We report the case of a 72-year-old woman who had poliomyelitis as a child, developed torsion scoliosis and post-polio syndrome, and had periodic but infrequent asthma attacks. After performing air stacking for 3 years, the patient suddenly developed a pneumothorax, indicating that this technique should be used with caution or not at all in patients with a known pulmonary pathology.

Keywords: Barotrauma; Pneumothorax; Insufflation.