肺犬糸状虫症の2例

Pulmonary dirofilariasis is almost always asymptomatic. An abnormal nodule was accidentally discovered by a chest x-ray during a medical checkup and detailed examination for other diseases was performed.
Case １. A female patient, in her ７０s, was admitted owing to flu-like symptoms and bloody sputum. A chest computed tomography（CT）scan revealed a nodular shadow with １０‐mm ground glass opacity in the right lower lobe.
Case２. A female patient, in her ６０s, was admitted due to an abnormal shadow on a chest xray in the left lung during a regular medical checkup. A chest CT scan revealed a nodular shadow with １３‐mm ground glass opacity in the left upper lobe.
Lung cancer was suspected in both cases. Thoracoscopy and partial lung resection were performed to confirm the diagnosis. The specimen consisted of granulation tissue and no malignancy was found at operation. Final pathological diagnosis revealed pulmonary dirofilariasis.
Pulmonary dirofilariasis can be definitively diagnosed by detecting a worm body. We believe partial lung resection during video-assisted thoracic surgery is a minimally invasive and an effective treatment for this disease.