Isolated large vessel pulmonary vasculitis leading to pulmonary artery aneurysm formation: a case report and literature review
Pulmonary artery (PA) vasculitis occurs in association with primary vasculitides—in particular, giant cell arteritis, Takayasu’s arteritis, or Behçet’s disease—or secondary vasculitis as a result of infections or malignancy. However, PA vasculitis in isolation and with concomitant aneurysmal dilation is an unusual finding. We present a rare case of PA aneurysm secondary to isolated PA vasculitis in an asymptomatic patient with no features of systemic vasculitis. This case highlights one of the first cases of PA vasculitis managed with surgical resection alone.
In order to study possible mediators of the vascular manifestations of passive cutaneous anaphylaxis (PCA), several arachidonic acid metabolites were injected into guinea-pig skin. SRS-A, LTB4, LTC and LTD increased vascular permeability, responses to LTs being enhanced by PGE2. Mepyramine inhibited responses to histamine, but not those to SRS-A and LTs: the latter were inhibited by the SRS-A antagonist FPL-55712. Both mepyramine and FPL-55712 exert limited inhibitory effects on vascular permeability during PCA. Leukotrienes may contribute towards vascular permeability during PCA.