Bronchial fracture:: Bronchoscopy management with bronchial stent and balloon bronchoplasty

Bronchial fracture is a rare, life-threatening injury usually associated with blunt chest trauma. It represents a great task in diagnosis, as its manifestations are various and nonspecific. Bronchoscopy has a primordial role to diagnose and, in selective cases, to treat bronchial fractures. The authors present the case report of a patient with a thoracic trauma after an accident in the workplace. The bronchoscopy revealed a fracture of the left main bronchus. Conservative treatment was performed with endobronchial stenting and balloon dilatation. In conclusion, a review of the literature on bronchial fracture and the role of bronchoscopy is presented.