Pulmonary Atelectasis in Children

Abstract

Pulmonary atelectasis is a common problem in clinical practice, especially in cases involving children, and is mainly caused by resorptive atelectasis, compressive atelectasis, and adhesive atelectasis. Diagnosis of this problem requires the recording of complete histories, physical examinations, and investigations that demand interpretative experience. Chest radiographs using both anterior-posterior and lateral views are also important in diagnosis. New investigative techniques, such as F-18 FDG-PET/CT imaging to differentiate atelectatic lungs from tumors, have been developed. Many treatment modalities lack evidence-bases but possess clinical benefits. These modalities include chest physiotherapy, bronchodilators, recruitment maneuvers and nebulized or direct tracheal application of recombinant human DNase I (rhDNase I) that can be used with regular patients and patients with cystic fibrosis.