Abstract
Congenital lobar emphysema (CLE) is a rare and life-threatening lung
anomaly that often poses a diagnostic dilemma. Co-existent congenital
heart defects (CHD) with left-to-right shunts can further complicate the
diagnosis of CLE. The presence of underlying CLE may only be suspected
after the repair of CHD. Here, we discuss a 2-month-old patient who
presented with respiratory distress and was identified to have a large
ventricular septal defect (VSD) and patent ductus arteriosus (PDA).
After the successful repair of the cardiac defects, the infant continued
to experience respiratory distress and failure to thrive. CLE was
subsequently diagnosed on imaging.