Congenital Lobar Emphysema in a 17-Day-Old Male Neonate: The Plain Radiographic Features and a Case Report

Abstract

Congenital lobar emphysema (CLE) is a rare respiratory disorder which allows air to enter the lungs but can’t escape causing over-inflation of the lobes of the lung. This condition (CLE) is commonly detected in the newborn or young infants but some cases are diagnosed in adulthood. Congenital lobar emphysema is a rare congenital malformation with a prevalence of 1 in 20,000 to 1 in 30, 000, and more prevalent in males, with a male to female ratio of about 3:1. This is a 17 day old male neonate that presented with respiratory difficulty and .had a supine chest radiograph that showed an overinflated left lung field more on the upper and middle zones with flattening of the left hemi diaphragm, marked shift of the heart and mediastinum to the right with some degree of loss of volume involving the right lung. We report the radiographic findings of this case due the rare nature of congenital lobar emphysema.