Congenital pulmonary malformations : Diagnosis and treatment

Abstract

Congenital pulmonary malformations (CPM) are rare and can be associated with high morbidity. Clinical presentation, diagnostic procedures, imaging, and therapy of CPM are discussed. Today, most CPM can be diagnosed prenatally by ultrasound. Postnatally, respiratory symptoms up to respiratory failure and recurrent lower respiratory tract infection are typical findings. Due to low diagnostic accuracy of chest x‑ray in CPM, all children with prenatal diagnosis of CPM or postnatally suspected CPM should undergo cross-sectional imaging. Based on imaging alone, the various subtypes of CPM cannot be definitively differentiated, which is why histological confirmation remains the gold standard. Surgical resection is the standard of care with minimally invasive procedures increasingly being employed. In certain situations, awatch-and-wait approach is possible.