Bilateral lung transplantation (BLTx) in a 9-year-old girl with
bronchopulmonary dysplasia with pulmonary hypertension
Abstract
Background Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a chronic respiratory
disease that occurs in premature infants and the prognosis is variable
depending on the comorbidities including fibrosis, emphysema, or
pulmonary hypertension (PH). We present a case of a 9-year-old girl who
developed PH associated with severe BPD (BPD-PH) and underwent bilateral
lung transplantation (BLTx). Case description A 9-year-old girl admitted
to our department to undergo BLTx. She was born at 23 weeks and 4 days
gestation with a weight of 507 grams. She received ventilation for the
first 2 months and required further respiratory care due to repetitive,
severe respiratory infections. She was diagnosed with BPD-PH at 6 months
of age and oral administration of pulmonary vasodilators were initiated.
She was registered as a lung transplant candidate at 4 years of age
after the life-threatening exacerbation. Chest computed tomography (CT)
revealed severe lung conditions with ground-glass opacities and
emphysematous low-density areas in the upper and lower lobes. BLTx from
a brain-dead male donor was performed. The pathological findings of her
resected lung revealed saccular, hypoplastic lung with alveolar
repair/regeneration and medial hypertrophy and muscularization of
peripheral arteries. The postoperative course was mostly uneventful. She
was free from oxygen administration and showed no signs of PH after 6
months of the surgery. Conclusion This is the first case report of BLTx
in a pediatric, irreversible BPH-PH patient with detailed
pathohistological findings and clinical examination. Lung
transplantation is one of the treatment options for severe BPD-PH.