All Topics  
Hemoptysis

 

   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link






 

Hemoptysis



 
 
Hemoptysis or haemoptysis is the expectoration (cough
Cough

A cough , in medicine, is a sudden and often repetitively occurring defense reflex which helps to clear the large breathing passages from excess secretions, irritants, foreign particles and microbes....
ing up) of blood
Blood

Blood is a specialized bodily fluid that delivers necessary substances to the body's Cell s ? such as nutrients and oxygen ? and transports waste products away from those same cells....
 or of blood-stained sputum
Sputum

Sputum is matter that is expectorated from the respiratory tract, such as mucus or phlegm, mixed with saliva, which can then be spat from the mouth....
 from the bronchi, larynx
Larynx

The larynx , colloquially known as the voicebox, is an organ in the neck of mammals involved in protection of the vertebrate trachea and sound production....
, trachea
Vertebrate trachea

The traceartes, or windpipe, is a tube that has an inner diameter of about 20-25 mm and a length of about 10-16 cm in humans. It commences at the larynx and bifurcates into the primary bronchus in mammals, and from the pharynx to the syrinx in birds, allowing the passage of air to the lungs....
, or lungs (e.g. in tuberculosis or other respiratory infections).

can be due to bronchitis
Bronchitis

Bronchitis is an inflammation of the large bronchus in the lungs. It can progress to pneumonia. Acute bronchitis is usually caused by viruses or bacteria and may last several days or weeks....
 or pneumonia
Pneumonia

Pneumonia is an Inflammation illness of the lung. Frequently, it is described as lung parenchyma/alveolus inflammation and abnormal alveolar filling with fluid ....
 most commonly, but also to lung neoplasm
Lung cancer

Lung cancer is a disease of uncontrolled cell growth in tissue of the lung. This growth may lead to metastasis, which is the invasion of adjacent tissue and infiltration beyond the lungs....
 (in smokers, when hemoptysis is persistent), aspergilloma
Aspergilloma

An aspergilloma, also known as a mycetoma or fungus ball, is a clump of fungus which exists in a body cavity such as the lung. It is associated with the Aspergillus species, but Zygomycetes and Fusarium may also form similar structures....
, tuberculosis
Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis is a common and often deadly infectious disease caused by mycobacterium, mainly Mycobacterium tuberculosis . Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect the central nervous system, the lymphatic system, the circulatory system, the genitourinary system, the gastrointestinal system, bones, joints, and even the...
, bronchiectasis
Bronchiectasis

Bronchiectasis is a disease that causes localized, irreversible dilation of part of the bronchial tree. It is classified as an obstructive lung disease, along with bronchitis and cystic fibrosis....
, coccidioidomycosis
Coccidioidomycosis

Coccidioidomycosis is a fungus disease caused by Coccidioides immitis or Coccidioides posadasii. It is endemic in certain parts of Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Utah and northwestern Mexico....
, pulmonary embolism
Pulmonary embolism

Pulmonary embolism is a blockage of the pulmonary artery or one of its branches, usually occurring when a deep vein thrombosis becomes dislodged from its site of formation and travels, or embolism, to the pulmonary artery blood supply of one of the lungs....
, or pneumonic plague
Pneumonic plague

Pneumonic plague is the most virulent and least common form of Plague , caused by the bacterium yersinia pestis. Typically, pneumonic form is due to a secondary spread from advanced infection of an initial bubonic form....
.

Rarer causes include hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia
Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia

In medicine, hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia , also known as William Osler-Frederick Parkes Weber-Rendu syndrome, is an autosomal dominant genetic disorder that leads to blood vessel malformations....
 (HHT or Rendu-Osler-Weber syndrome), or Goodpasture's syndrome
Goodpasture's syndrome

Goodpasture?s syndrome is a rare condition characterised by rapid destruction of the kidneys and haemorrhaging of the lungs. Although many diseases can present with these symptoms, the name Goodpasture?s syndrome is usually reserved for the autoimmune disease produced when the patient?s immune system attacks cells presenting the Goodpasture...
 and Wegener's granulomatosis
Wegener's granulomatosis

Wegener's granulomatosis is a form of vasculitis that affects the lungs, kidneys and other organs. Due to its end-organ damage, it can be a serious disease that requires long-term immune suppression....
.

In children it is commonly due to a foreign body
Foreign body

In physiology, a foreign body is any object originating outside the body. In machinery, it can mean any unwanted intruding object....
 in the respiratory tract
Respiratory tract

In humans the respiratory tract is the part of the anatomy that has to do with the process of Respiration .The respiratory tract is divided into 3 segments:...
.

It can result from over-anticoagulation from treatment by drugs such as warfarin
Warfarin

Warfarin is an anticoagulant. It was initially marketed as a pesticide against rats and mice, and is still popular for this purpose, although more potent poisons such as brodifacoum have since been developed....
.

Cardiac causes like congestive heart failure and mitral stenosis should be ruled out.

The origin of blood can be known by observing its color.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Hemoptysis'
Start a new discussion about 'Hemoptysis'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Hemoptysis or haemoptysis is the expectoration (cough
Cough

A cough , in medicine, is a sudden and often repetitively occurring defense reflex which helps to clear the large breathing passages from excess secretions, irritants, foreign particles and microbes....
ing up) of blood
Blood

Blood is a specialized bodily fluid that delivers necessary substances to the body's Cell s ? such as nutrients and oxygen ? and transports waste products away from those same cells....
 or of blood-stained sputum
Sputum

Sputum is matter that is expectorated from the respiratory tract, such as mucus or phlegm, mixed with saliva, which can then be spat from the mouth....
 from the bronchi, larynx
Larynx

The larynx , colloquially known as the voicebox, is an organ in the neck of mammals involved in protection of the vertebrate trachea and sound production....
, trachea
Vertebrate trachea

The traceartes, or windpipe, is a tube that has an inner diameter of about 20-25 mm and a length of about 10-16 cm in humans. It commences at the larynx and bifurcates into the primary bronchus in mammals, and from the pharynx to the syrinx in birds, allowing the passage of air to the lungs....
, or lungs (e.g. in tuberculosis or other respiratory infections).

Causes

This can be due to bronchitis
Bronchitis

Bronchitis is an inflammation of the large bronchus in the lungs. It can progress to pneumonia. Acute bronchitis is usually caused by viruses or bacteria and may last several days or weeks....
 or pneumonia
Pneumonia

Pneumonia is an Inflammation illness of the lung. Frequently, it is described as lung parenchyma/alveolus inflammation and abnormal alveolar filling with fluid ....
 most commonly, but also to lung neoplasm
Lung cancer

Lung cancer is a disease of uncontrolled cell growth in tissue of the lung. This growth may lead to metastasis, which is the invasion of adjacent tissue and infiltration beyond the lungs....
 (in smokers, when hemoptysis is persistent), aspergilloma
Aspergilloma

An aspergilloma, also known as a mycetoma or fungus ball, is a clump of fungus which exists in a body cavity such as the lung. It is associated with the Aspergillus species, but Zygomycetes and Fusarium may also form similar structures....
, tuberculosis
Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis is a common and often deadly infectious disease caused by mycobacterium, mainly Mycobacterium tuberculosis . Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect the central nervous system, the lymphatic system, the circulatory system, the genitourinary system, the gastrointestinal system, bones, joints, and even the...
, bronchiectasis
Bronchiectasis

Bronchiectasis is a disease that causes localized, irreversible dilation of part of the bronchial tree. It is classified as an obstructive lung disease, along with bronchitis and cystic fibrosis....
, coccidioidomycosis
Coccidioidomycosis

Coccidioidomycosis is a fungus disease caused by Coccidioides immitis or Coccidioides posadasii. It is endemic in certain parts of Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Utah and northwestern Mexico....
, pulmonary embolism
Pulmonary embolism

Pulmonary embolism is a blockage of the pulmonary artery or one of its branches, usually occurring when a deep vein thrombosis becomes dislodged from its site of formation and travels, or embolism, to the pulmonary artery blood supply of one of the lungs....
, or pneumonic plague
Pneumonic plague

Pneumonic plague is the most virulent and least common form of Plague , caused by the bacterium yersinia pestis. Typically, pneumonic form is due to a secondary spread from advanced infection of an initial bubonic form....
.

Rarer causes include hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia
Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia

In medicine, hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia , also known as William Osler-Frederick Parkes Weber-Rendu syndrome, is an autosomal dominant genetic disorder that leads to blood vessel malformations....
 (HHT or Rendu-Osler-Weber syndrome), or Goodpasture's syndrome
Goodpasture's syndrome

Goodpasture?s syndrome is a rare condition characterised by rapid destruction of the kidneys and haemorrhaging of the lungs. Although many diseases can present with these symptoms, the name Goodpasture?s syndrome is usually reserved for the autoimmune disease produced when the patient?s immune system attacks cells presenting the Goodpasture...
 and Wegener's granulomatosis
Wegener's granulomatosis

Wegener's granulomatosis is a form of vasculitis that affects the lungs, kidneys and other organs. Due to its end-organ damage, it can be a serious disease that requires long-term immune suppression....
.

In children it is commonly due to a foreign body
Foreign body

In physiology, a foreign body is any object originating outside the body. In machinery, it can mean any unwanted intruding object....
 in the respiratory tract
Respiratory tract

In humans the respiratory tract is the part of the anatomy that has to do with the process of Respiration .The respiratory tract is divided into 3 segments:...
.

It can result from over-anticoagulation from treatment by drugs such as warfarin
Warfarin

Warfarin is an anticoagulant. It was initially marketed as a pesticide against rats and mice, and is still popular for this purpose, although more potent poisons such as brodifacoum have since been developed....
.

Cardiac causes like congestive heart failure and mitral stenosis should be ruled out.

The origin of blood can be known by observing its color. Bright red, foamy blood comes from the respiratory tract while dark red, coffee-colored blood comes from the gastrointestinal tract
Gastrointestinal tract

The digestive tract is the system of Organ s within multicellular animals that takes in food, digestion it to extract energy and nutrients, and expels the remaining waste....
.

Extensive injury can cause one to cough up blood.

Diagnostic workup

Hemoptysis

External links

  • Virtual Cancer Centre