Hemoptysis Caused by Leech Infestation: A Unique Case

Hemoptysis in the patients suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) may be resulted by active TB or the complications of such disease which appears as bronchiectasis, fungal lesions deployed in tuberculosis cavities or Rasmussen aneurysm, Bronchiolitis or relapse and sometimes, it may be considered as caused by reasons irrelevant to TB. In this report, the patient is a 69-year-old man as complained of hemoptysis with a treated TB experience that was found as normal in the preliminary review of X-ray and CT. During bronchoscopy, a live leech (bloodsucker) was found in hypopharynx area that was swallowed after repeated attempts to remove it through the gastrointestinal tract and its suction signs were appeared as a mucosal mass in the hypopharynx area. The patient had no symptoms during his stay in the hospital.