Bronchial granuloma - where's the foreign body?

Airway masses are uncommon in children. The majority of bronchial tumors ar e granulomata secondary to an inhaled foreign body. However, other rare dis eases like primary bronchopulmonary tumors should always be considered in t he evaluation of a bronchial granuloma in children. The differential diagno sis of bronchial granuloma is presented. We report a 7-year-old girl with a 3-year history of recurrent cough and fevers who was found to have a bronc hial granuloma in the left upper lobe bronchus. The diagnosis of foreign bo dy-related granuloma was eventually made after combined and repeated rigid and flexible bronchoscopy. This case highlights the need to search aggressi vely for a foreign body in the presence of an airway granuloma in children, even in the absence of a history of aspiration. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd, All rights reserved.