Doctors at SLG Hospitals save life of 11 months old baby suffering with a large cyst in the lung

Hyderabad, August 28 , 2021: Doctors at SLG Hospitals, one of the leading healthcare facilities in the city have saved life of a 11-months-old baby boy suffering with a large cyst in the left lung. The cyst was growing and reached six centimeters in size resulting in difficulty in breathing and necessitating an urgent surgery to remove it.

Known as congenital pulmonary airway malformation (CPAM) or congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation (CCAM), this cyst in the lung is formed while the child is in the womb. In most cases, babies do well and have normal development and lung function because during the pregnancy, the growth of the cyst usually starts to slow down in the second trimester. Sometimes, the mass becomes very small and undetectable.

Commenting on the procedure, Dr. Vivek Babu Bojjawar, Lead Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon, SLG Hospitals said, “The boy was presented at the hospital on August 12th with difficulty in breathing and feeding, and pre-natal ultrasound revealed presence of large balloon like cyst replacing one half of the left lung. It was noticed that the cyst was expanding rapidly and will lead to further difficulty in breathing. CT scan further revealed that the large balloon like air filled cavity in lower half of left lung led to compression of the rest of the lung. This six-centimeter cyst was blocking access to normal lung complicating the procedure.”

“This is a benign (non-cancerous) mass of abnormal lung tissue, located usually on one lobe of the lung. This rare condition is noted in one in every 35000 children and is usually caused by overgrowth of abnormal lung tissue that may form fluid filled cysts or result in the failure of the development of the tiny air sacs that characterize a normal lung. A surgery was performed to remove the cyst and the child was subsequently kept under constant observation before he was discharged on August 16th,” added Dr. Aravind kumar, Consultant Pediatrician, SLG Hospitals.

If a cyst is causing a lot of pain or has grown bigger in size over time, it is important the cyst is removed in a clinical or surgical procedure. Delay in attending to these symptoms may lead to a more serious condition that needs major treatment. Babies who have these cysts removed either before or after birth usually do well afterwards. Babies’ lungs continue to grow until the child is 9 years old, leaving plenty of time for the development of normal healthy lungs.