Leiomyomas of the lower respiratory tract: a case report.

A rare case of leiomyoma of the left main bronchus in a 16-year-old female has been reported. Of the pulmonary leiomyomas reported, 18.3 per cent were found in the trachea, 33.8 per cent in the bronchi and 47.9 per cent in the parenchyma. Bronchial lesions tend to produce symptoms due to partial or complete obstruction of the affected bronchus, whereas, over 90 per cent of parenchymal lesions which are more common in women, are asymptomatic and usually discovered on routine chest radiographs. Tracheal lesions may present as bronchial asthma. The correct diagnosis is not usually made until the lesion has been resected. However, early and correct diagnosis may be made in suspicious cases by histological examination of bronchoscopic biopsy specimens or frozen section material obtained at thoracotomy. The surgical approach to these tumors is conservative but lobectomy or pneumonectomy is often necessary because of secondary pulmonary destruction.