BRAIDED BRONCHUS - A PREVIOUSLY UNDESCRIBED AIRWAY ANOMALY

Infants with congenital heart disease frequently experience recurrent atelectasis, in many cases associated with anomalous branching of the bronchial tree. The bridging bronchus has been well described and has been associated with both left-sided obstructive lesions and a sling-l ike left pulmonary artery. We describe a similar, though distinct airw ay anomaly, the ''braided bronchus,'' associated with a bridging bronc hus in a child with coarctation of the aorta and recurrent atelectasis . Methods used to delineate the ''braided bronchus'' are described. (C ) 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.