A Case of Migration of Sutures and Pledgets to the Bronchial Lumen 15 months After Radical Lung Cancer Surgery

<p>Background. In rare cases, suture material is found in the bronchial lumen after respiratory surgery. Case. A 67-year-old woman underwent thoracoscopically assisted right S⁶ segmentectomy for lung cancer. In the operation, B⁶a and B⁶b+c originated separately from B⁶, stapling both B⁶a and B⁶b+c. Air leakage was observed at the stump of B⁶a and closed with Teflon pledgets; no complications were seen after the operation. Fifteen months after the operation, the patient visited our hospital with gradual worsening of cough and dyspnea. Chest X-ray showed an infiltrative shadow, so we suspected pneumonia and performed computed tomography, which showed a high-density structure in the truncus intermedius, resulting in obstruction of the truncus intermedius. Suspecting a bronchial foreign substance, we performed bronchoscopy, and a white foreign substance was found in the truncus intermedius. The foreign substance was easily removed. The symptoms improved after removal of the foreign matter, which consisted of surgical sutures and pledgets. We experienced a case wherein sutures and pledgets migrated to the bronchial lumen 15 months after radical resection for lung cancer. Conclusion. We hypothesized that granulation from the bronchopleural fistula caused the sutures and Teflon pledgets to migrate to the bronchial lumen.</p>