1996 Volume 18 Issue 6 Pages 563-568
A 34-year-old man who complained of a dry cough was admitted to our hospital. The chest X-ray film and CT scans showed multiple nodular shadows and cystic lesions in the upper and middle lung fields of both lungs. A diagnosis of pulmonary eosinophilic granuloma was made by transbronchial lung biopsy (TBLB) because the specimen revealed granuloma with eosinophils and histiocytes which were positive for S-100 protein staining. Because the chest X-ray film findings deteriorated for two weeks after admission, prednisolone was administered and his complaints and the findings of chest X-ray improved. However the abnormal shadows on the chest X-ray slightly increased when the dose of prednisolone was tapered. Many cases of this disease were previously diagnosed by open lung biopsy, but the number of cases diagnosed by TBLB are increasing. It is considered that TBLB, combined with bronchoalveolar lavage, is a useful diagnostic procedure for many cases in which pulmonary eosinophilic granuloma in the early or active stages is suspected. Recently thoracoscopic lung biopsy is useful for cases which cannot be diagnosed by TBLB.
