November 2018 Arizona Thoracic Society Notes

The November 2018 Arizona Thoracic Society meeting was held on Wednesday, November 28, 2018 at the HonorHealth Rehabilitation Hospital beginning at 6:30 PM. This was a dinner meeting with case presentations. There were 10 in attendance representing the pulmonary, critical care, sleep, and radiology communities.

At the beginning of the meeting  the Tobacco 21 bill was discussed. This bill has been twice held up in the Arizona House of Representatives Commerce Committee by the committee chairman. It was noted that one of the healthcare executives had financially supported the reelection campaign of the commerce committee chairman. A decision was made to send a letter to the healthcare executive pointing the pro-tobacco stance of the committee chairman. CME for the Arizona Thoracic Society meetings was also discussed. CME case presentations that had been previously approved will be presented and CME granted through the University of Arizona.

There were 3 case presentations:

1. Dr. Richard Robbins presented for Dr. Robert Raschke a case of a 54-year-old man with neck pain that eventually proved to be a paraspinous abscess.
2. Dr. Mike Gotway presented a 36-year-old woman who presented with respiratory failure. She eventually proved to have been self-injecting hydrocodone.
3. Dr. Lewis Wesselius presented a 28-year-old man from Tennessee with enlarging lung nodules who had been treated for presumed histoplasmosis, but was clinically worsening. Lung biopsy demonstrated metastatic angiosarcoma. 

The meeting was adjourned about 8:30 PM. The next meeting will be on January 23, 2019 at 6:30 PM at HonorHealth Rehabilitation Hospital.

Cite as: Robbins RA. November 2018 Arizona Thoracic Society notes. Southwest J Pulm Crit Care. 2018;17(6):149. doi: https://doi.org/10.13175/swjpcc119-18 PDF

September 2018 Arizona Thoracic Society Notes

The September 2018 Arizona Thoracic Society meeting was held on Wednesday, September 26, 2018 at the HonorHealth Rehabilitation Hospital beginning at 6:30 PM. This was a dinner meeting with case presentations. There were representatives in attendance from the pulmonary, critical care, sleep, and radiology communities.

At the beginning of the meeting attendance was again discussed.

There were 3 case presentations:

1. Dr. Gerry Schwartzberg presented a case of a woman in her 70’s with diffuse cystic lung disease. She had a monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance due to light chain disease and the possibility of amyloidosis causing cystic lung disease was discussed.  
2. Dr. Lewis Wesselius presented a 28-year-old man from Tennessee with enlarging lung nodules who had been treated for presumed histoplasmosis, but was having hemoptysis and clinically worsening. Lung biopsy demonstrated metastatic angiosarcoma.  
3. Dr. Wesselius also presented a 44-year-old woman with diabetes and cavitary pulmonary coccidioidomycosis which involved both left upper lobe and left lower lobe which had progressed despite 400 mg/day of fluconazole who had been referred in 2012 for possible thoracotomy. Surgery was deferred since it would have required a left pneumonectomy. The fluconazole dose was increased, and cavity resolved gradually over 6 years.  This led to discussion of indications for surgery in cavitary coccidioidomycosis. 

The meeting was adjourned about 8 PM. The next meeting will be on November 28 at 6:30 PM at HonorHealth Rehabilitation Hospital.

Lewis J. Wesselius, MD
President, Arizona Thoracic Society

Cite as: Wesselius LJ. September 2018 Arizona thoracic society notes. Southwest J Pulm Crit Care. 2018;17:116. doi: https://doi.org/10.13175/swjpcc109-18 PDF