Images in cardio-thoracic surgery. Identification of a hypertrophied bronchial artery using three-dimensional computed tomography.

1010-7940/$ — see front matter # 2009 European Association for Cardio-Thoracic S doi:10.1016/j.ejcts.2009.05.028 A 56-year-old woman, presenting with bronchiectasis (Fig. 1), underwent a chest computed tomography (CT) with three-dimensional reconstructions showing marked hypertrophy of the bronchial arteries (Fig. 2, Video 1). This pathophysiological phenomenon places the patient at high risk for haemoptysis. While generally managed by bronchial artery embolisation, haemoptysis might require thoracic surgical intervention.