Pulmonary lymphatic drainage to the mediastinum based on computed tomographic observations of the primary complex of pulmonary histoplasmosis

Koji Takahashi*, Tomoaki Sasaki, Basim Nabaa, Edwin Junior van Beek, William Stanford, Tamio Aburano

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract / Description of output

Background: In the primary infection of pulmonary histoplasmosis, pulmonary lesions are commonly solitary and associated with hilar and/or mediastinal nodal diseases, which spontaneously resolve, resulting in calcifications in individuals with normal cellular immunity.

Purpose: To assess the lymphatic drainage to the mediastinum from each pulmonary segment and lobe using computed tomographic (CT) observations of a calcified primary complex pulmonary histoplasmosis and predict which patients with N2 disease that would benefit from surgery.

Material and Methods: We collected 585 CT studies of patients with primary complex histoplasmosis consisting of solitary calcified pulmonary lesions and calcified hilar and/or mediastinal nodal disease. Using the N stage criteria of non-small cell lung cancer, we assessed the distribution of the involved hilar and mediastinal nodes depending on the pulmonary segment of the lesion, with a focus on skip involvement. We also assessed the correlation between the incidence of N1 and skip N2 involvement and the mean number of involved mediastinal nodal stations in the non-skip N2 and skip N2 groups.

Results: Skip involvement was common in the apical segment (9/45, 20.0%), posterior segment (7/31, 22.6%), and mediolbasal segment (13/20, 65.0%) in the right lung, and in the apicoposterior segment (7/55, 12.7%), lateral basal segment (6/26, 23.1%), and posterobasal segment (16/47, 34.0%) in the left lung. The incidence of skip involvement in each segment showed a significant inverse correlation with that of N1 involvement (r = -0.51, P <0.05) in both lungs. The mean number of involved mediastinal nodal stations in the non-skip N2 and skip N2 groups in all segments of both lungs were 1.4 (434/301) and 1.2 (93/77), and the former was significantly greater than the latter (P <0.01).

Conclusion: Our data showed a predictable pattern of segmental and lobar lymphatic drainage to the mediastinum and suggested that skip involvement could represent the initial mediastinal node involvement via direct lymphatic drainage.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)161-167
Number of pages7
JournalActa Radiologica
Volume53
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2012

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

  • LEVEL N2 DISEASE
  • mediastinum
  • Lymphatic
  • CT
  • SURVIVAL
  • PATTERNS
  • SKIP METASTASIS
  • PROGNOSTIC-FACTORS
  • CARCINOMA
  • LOCATION
  • lung
  • NODE METASTASIS
  • STATION
  • CELL LUNG-CANCER

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