Rare Manifestation of Idiopathic Tracheobronchopathia Osteochondroplastica: Misdiagnosed and Untreated Entity?

Clinicopathological Features and Management Principles of Tracheobronchopathia Osteochondroplastica - A Scoping Review

Tracheobronchopathia osteochondroplastica (TO) is an orphan disease of the tracheobronchial tree without any known etiological attributes. There are several case reports published on this condition, yet the available information about the TO is discrete and of little clinical value. This scoping review is the first large-scale review on TO that collates individual patient data from the published case reports and descriptively analyses the clinicopathological features of this unique condition along with its management approaches and therapeutic outcomes. The objective was to synthesize comprehensive literature review on TO that can aid clinical practice and further research. An electronic search conducted in five large databases, including PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, CENTRAL, and Web of Science, for the published articles of TO yielded 1072 items. After screening, the individual patient data of 371 TO cases from 228 eligible articles were included and analysed in this scoping review.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12070-023-03998-6.

Tracheobronchopathia Osteochondroplastica: A Rare, Underrecognized Entity

Tracheobronchopathia Osteochondroplastica (TO) is an extremely rare condition characterized by the presence of nodules made of bone and cartilage within the submucosa of the tracheobronchial wall. These protuberant nodules inside the trachea and bronchi can lead to airway obstruction, resulting in patients who experience recurrent respiratory systems and infections. The exact etiology is unknown. The mean age of diagnosis is in the 5th - 6th decades of life. TO is often confused with other diagnoses, especially asthma. We report a 41-year-old female who presented with intermittent exertional dyspnea for 10 years. Workups, including pulmonary function test, CT chest, and most importantly, flexible bronchoscopy, aided in the appropriate diagnosis. The unique feature observed during bronchoscopy is the sparing of the posterior wall of the trachea and bronchi.