Causes of multifocal or patchy airspace disease

What are some causes of multifocal or patchy airspace disease?

Causes of chronic airspace disease can be divided into four general groups, namely inflammatory, infectious, neoplastic, and miscellaneous.

Here are the causes of multifocal or patchy airspace disease

When Acute

  • Pneumonia
  • Aspiration
  • Pulmonary contusion
  • pulmonary hemorrhage

When Chronic

  • Organizing pneumonia
  • mycobacterial infection
  • fungal infection
  • chronic eosinophilic pneumonia
  • PAP
  • vasculitis
  • malignancy (lymphoma, lung cancer, and pulmonary metastasis)

Computed tomography of the chest is usually performed in this set of patients to identify characteristic imaging findings. Familiarity with the differential diagnosis and characteristic imaging findings for chronic airspace disease is very important for guiding patient’s management in a timely fashion.

Airspace opacity can be seen as GGO when the bronchial and vascular markings are still visible, or can manifest as consolidation opacification, usually with air-bronchogram, when the bronchial or vascular markings are obscured.

Airspace opacity can be caused by different materials, including water, pus, blood, cells, protein and fat.

Chronic airspace opacities may persist throughout multiple imaging studies over time, with minimal or no significant change. It bears repeating from above that, alternatively, while persistent, they may show minor or major changes in distribution and appearance

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