Abstract
Fiberoptic and rigid bronchoscopy are widely used diagnostic and therapeutic tools in pulmonary medicine. Investigators often neglect the bronchial variations; however, bronchial variations may have important implications for bronchoscopy, brachytherapy, pulmonary resections and intubations. It is accepted that anatomic variations of the airways are due to anomalies in the development of the lungs. As a result, lung buds grow to an inappropriate number or arise at atypical sites. In the present study, we tried to determine the incidence of bronchial variations in our region. We investigated 2550 consecutive reports of bronchoscopy retrospectively. Major variations of the tracheobronchial tree were found in 2.6% of patients examined by bronchoscopy. The most frequent finding was a bifurcate pattern in the right upper lobe (47.7%). The variations were localized to the right upper lobe in 71.6% of patients. Male predominance was observed in all anatomic variations except one.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Appleton AB (1944) Segments and blood-vessels of the lungs. Lancet ii, 592–4.
Atwell SW (1967) Major anomalies of the tracheobronchial tree with a list of the minor anomalies. Dis Chest 52, 611–15.
Boyden EA (1946) The anatomical hazards of lingulectomy. Surgery 20, 828–9.
Boyden EA (1955) Developmental anomalies of the lungs. Am J Surg 89, 79–89.
Boyden EA, Hamre CJ (1951) An analysis of variations in the bronchovascular patterns of the middle lobe in fifty dissected and twenty injected lungs. J Thorac Surg 21, 172–88.
Boyden EA, Hartmann JF (1946) An analysis of variations in the bronchopulmonary segments of the left upper lobes of fifty lungs. Am J Anat 79, 321–60.
Boyden EA, Scannell JG (1948) An analysis of variations in the bronchovascular pattern of the right upper lobe of fifty lungs. Am J Anat 82, 27–72.
Conacher ID (2000) Implications of a tracheal bronchus for adult anaesthetic practice. Br J Anaesth 85, 317–21.
Fraser RG, Pare JAP, Pare PD, Fraser RS, Genereux GP (1988) Diagnosis of Diseases of the Chest. W.B. Saunders, Philadelphia.
Ghaye B, Szapiro D, Fanchamps JM, Dondelinger RF (2001) Congenital bronchial abnormalities revisited. Radiographics 21, 105–19.
Keslar P, Newman B, Oh KS (1991) Radiographic manifestations of anomalies of the lung. Radiol Clin North Am 29, 255–70.
Koshino T, Murakami G, Sato TJ et al. (2002) Configurations of the segmental and subsegmental bronchi and arteries in the right upper lobe of the human lung with special reference to their concomitant relations and double subsegmental arterial supply. Anat Sci Int 77, 64–73.
McLaughlin FJ, Strieder DJ, Harris GBC, Vawter GP, Eraklis AJ (1985) Tracheal bronchus: Association with respiratory morbidity in childhood. J Pediatr 106, 751–5.
Scannell JG (1947) A study of variations of the bronchopulmonary segments in the left upper lobe. J Thoracic Surg 31, 530–7.
Siegel MJ, Shackelford GD, Francis RS, McAlister WH (1979) Tracheal bronchus. Radiology 130, 353–5.
Wu JW, White CS, Meyer CA, Haramati LB, Mason AC (1999) Variant bronchial anatomy: CT appearance and classification. Am J Roentgenol 172, 741–5.
Yamashita H (1978) Roentgenologic Anatomy of the Lung. Igaku-Shoin Medical Publishers, Tokyo.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gonlugur, U., Efeoglu, T., Kaptanoglu, M. et al. Major anatomical variations of the tracheobronchial tree: Bronchoscopic observation. Anato Sci Int 80, 111–115 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1447-073x.2005.00104.x
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1447-073x.2005.00104.x