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Case Reports
. 2022 Aug 16;45(2):e1007.
doi: 10.23938/ASSN.1007.

[Exogenous lipoid pneumonia and anorexia nervosa: a case report]

[Article in Spanish]
J Rodríguez Sanz  1 , A Arellano Alvarez  2 , L Ferrando Lamana  3 , T Martín Carpi  4
Affiliations
Case Reports

[Exogenous lipoid pneumonia and anorexia nervosa: a case report]

[Article in Spanish]
J Rodríguez Sanz et al. An Sist Sanit Navar. .

Abstract
in English, Spanish

Exogenous lipoid pneumonia is a rare entity with non-specific clinical presentation. Early diagnosis is key to prevent pulmonary fibrosis in cases of chronic exogenous lipoid pneumonia . Here, we present the diagnostic process in a 51-year-old female with chronic cough and yellow sputum, no fever nor signs of infection. The computerized axial tomography scan showed alveolar infiltrates in both lungs. We performed a bronchoalveolar lavage and collected a yellowish material, but no clear result were obtained from its analysis. Cryobiopsy of lung tissue was key for the diagnosis of exogenous lipoid pneumonia . This may be related to the chronic anorexia nervosa that the patient suffers, associated with purgative habits. After identifying the cause of the symptoms, the patient is recovering, changing her habits, and has no cough nor sputum.

La neumonía lipoidea exógena es una entidad infrecuente y con una presentación clínica inespecífica. Su diagnóstico temprano es clave para prevenir la fibrosis pulmonar que produce su cronificación.

Presentamos el proceso diagnóstico de una paciente de 51 años, con clínica de tos con expectoración amarillenta, sin síntomas de infección ni fiebre, de larga evolución. En la tomografía axial computarizada se observaron infiltrados pulmonares bilaterales de tipo alveolar. Se realizó un lavado broncoalveolar en el que se obtuvo un material amarillento de origen desconocido, que no permitió alcanzar ninguna conclusión clara. La criobiopsia pulmonar fue la prueba clave que llevó al diagnóstico de neumonía lipoidea exógena, en probable relación con la anorexia con hábito purgativo que la paciente sufría de forma crónica.

Hallado el origen del problema, la paciente se encuentra actualmente en proceso de recuperación y cambio de hábitos, sin tos ni expectoración.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflictos de intereses: Los autores declaran no tener conflictos de intereses.

Figures

Figura 1
Figura 1. A. Tomografía axial computarizada. Se observan opacidades confluyentes bilaterales. B. Lavado broncoalveolar separado en dos fases inmediatamente tras su obtención.
Figura 2
Figura 2. A. Parénquima pulmonar que presenta amplias vacuolas lipídicas (*) y macrófagos espumosos intraalveolares (flecha). B. Detalle de macrófago (→) con vacuolas de diferentes tamaños. Hematoxilina-eosina. A: 100x. B: 400x.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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