Bronchiectasis, a long-term sequela of ammonia inhalation: A case report and review of the literature

Abstract

Anhydrous ammonia is a colorless, highly irritating, watersoluble gas with a pungent odor. It is commonly used as a refrigerant in industry and fertilizer in agriculture. Ammonia is pressurized into a liquid for storage and transport. Inhalation of this gas may acutely cause a variety of respiratory conditions including laryngitis, tracheobronchitis, bronchiolitis, bronchopneumonia and pulmonary edema. The patients that survive the acute phase may develop a disabling pulmonary disease characterized by bronchiectasis, airway hyperreactivity [11,13], bronchiolitis obliterans [3,6], chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [10,12] and occasionally interstitial lung disease [5,9]. We present a case and a literature review about the development of bronchiectasis after ammonia inhalation.