Accessory cardiac bronchus: 3D CT demonstration in nine cases

Accessory cardiac bronchus (ACB) has been described mainly as isolated case reports in the literature. We report nine consecutive cases of ACB, which occurred in five males and four females and were detected in 11,159 routine spiral CT examinations of the chest, performed between 1944 and 1998. Frequency of the anomaly was 0.08%. Accessory cardiac bronchus originated from the intermediate bronchus in eight cases and from the right main bronchus in one case. Mean largest diameter of ACE was 8.7 mm (range 4.0-13.8 mm) and mean length was 11.9 mm (range 4.2-23.4 mm). An abnormal pulmonary artery was observed in one case. Six bronchi presented with a blind distal extremity and three showed a ventilated lobulus with a mean largest diameter of 37.5 mm (range 18.6-62.0 mm). All ACBs were documented by 3D shaded-surface display (SSD) and virtual endobronchial navigation, which may facilitate the diagnosis. The literature was reviewed.