Chronic pulmonary aspergillosis and pulmonary embolism/venous thromboembolism: a case series and systematic review of the literature - PubMed
5 hours ago
- #Venous thromboembolism
- #Chronic pulmonary aspergillosis
- #Pulmonary embolism
- Chronic pulmonary aspergillosis (CPA) increases venous thromboembolism (VTE) risk due to chronic inflammation and structural lung damage.
- A case series from Uganda reports three CPA patients with pulmonary embolism (PE), all with prior tuberculosis, and varying outcomes with antifungal and anticoagulation therapy.
- Systematic review identifies only nine reported cases globally of coexisting CPA and VTE/PE, often linked to TB or COPD.
- Proposed mechanisms include fungal angioinvasion causing endothelial damage and post-PE lung cavities facilitating Aspergillus colonization.
- Combination therapy is challenging, with anticoagulation raising hemoptysis risk, but antifungal treatment often leads to improvement.