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Case Reports
. 2022 Jul;34(123):191-194.
doi: 10.22038/IJORL.2022.53313.2815.

Tracheocele: A Rare Entity

Souha Kallel  1 , Mohamed Amin Chaabouni  1 , Wadii Thabet  1 , Malek Mnejja  1 , Khaireddine Ben Mahfoudh  2 , Ilhem Charfeddine  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Tracheocele: A Rare Entity

Souha Kallel et al. Iran J Otorhinolaryngol. 2022 Jul.

Abstract

Introduction: Tracheocele or tracheal diverticulum is an uncommon benign entity that can be congenital or acquired. It is usually diagnosed incidentally on cervicothoracic imaging. Our aim is to describe the etiopathogenic, clinical and paraclinical features of the tracheocele as well as its therapeutic modalities.

Case report: We report 2 cases of asymptomatic congenital tracheocele occurred in a boy and a woman, incidentally found on cervical CT scan done for accidental ingestion of chicken bone and infected thyroid hematocele respectively. The tracheocele, in our 2 cases, was probably congenital: no risk factors were noted and the opening of the tracheocele was narrow. The tracheocele was located in the right posterolateral tracheal wall in the 2 cases. It communicated with the tracheal lumen in one case. The female patient underwent a right lobectomy and resection of the tracheocele. For the boy, our attitude was conservative. The evolution was uneventful in the 2 cases.

Conclusions: The presence or absence of risk factors, CT scan, bronchoscopy and histologic exam may distinguish between congenital and acquired forms. Asymptomatic patients are managed conservatively. Surgical resection is the treatment of choice for symptomatic patients.

Keywords: Computed tomography scan; Diverticulum; Tracheal diseases; Tracheocele.

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Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1
Cervical CT (computed tomography) scan in axial section shows a 11 mm air image located in the right posterolateral tracheal wall, at the thoracic inlet. It communicates with the tracheal lumen
Fig 2
Fig 2
a: Cervical CT (computed tomography) scan in axial section with contrast enhancement shows a ring enhancing cystic lesion located in the right lobe of the thyroid gland ( ) which exerts a mass effect on the trachea, and a 9,6 x 6,9 mm air image ( ) located in the right posterolateral tracheal wall without communication with the lumen of the trachea.. 2b: Cervical CT (computed tomography) scan in sagittal section with contrast enhancement shows a ring enhancing pretracheal cystic lesion ( ) and a 9,6 x 6,9 mm retrotracheal air image ( ).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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