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Case Reports
. 2024 Jun 24;18(1):289.
doi: 10.1186/s13256-024-04620-1.

Bronchobiliary fistula after traumatic liver rupture: a case report

Teng Zhou  1 , Wenming Wu  1 , Chao Cheng  1 , Hui Wang  1 , Xiaochuan Hu  1 , Zhenhui Jiang  2
Affiliations
Case Reports

Bronchobiliary fistula after traumatic liver rupture: a case report

Teng Zhou et al. J Med Case Rep. .

Abstract

Introduction: Bronchobiliary fistulas are rare and difficult to treat. Peacock first reported this entity in 1850 while treating a patient with hepatic encopresis.

Case presentation: A 67-year-old Chinese male patient presented to the outpatient clinic with a complaint of coughing up phlegm with chest tightness for 4 days with symptoms of intermittent bilirubin sputum with a sputum volume of about 500 ml per day but no symptoms of abdominal pain or jaundice and no yellow urine or steatorrhea. The examination revealed cyanosis of the lips and mouth, barrel chest, low breath sounds on the right side, and a large number of wet rales heard in both lungs. The imaging investigations were suggestive of bronchobiliary fistula. Therefore, the patient was operated on and discharged with no perioperative complications.

Conclusion: Bronchobiliary fistula should be considered diagnostically in patients with known liver disease who also experience trauma or medical treatment and cough up bile-colored sputum, regardless of the presence of concurrent infections, and in conjunction with radiological expertise to identify it. Here, we report a case of bronchobiliary fistula and a brief review of the literature on it.

Keywords: Bronchobiliary fistula; Liver rupture; Trauma.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Chest CT scan showing sizable solid shadow in the middle and lower lobes of the right lung, large right pleural effusion with incomplete expansion of the right lower lung under pressure
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
The BBF seen on the CT scan of the abdomen (red arrow)
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
The BBF on the sagittal CT scan of the abdomen (red arrow)
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
The BBF on MRCP (red arrow)
Fig.5
Fig.5
Chest CT at patient follow-up
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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