Cavitatory pulmonary infarcts

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Cavitation associated with pulmonary infarction is a rare event. According to autopsy series, the reported cavitation rates are around 4-5% pulmonary infarcts . They can represent either aseptic pulmonary cavitation or superimposed infection following cavitation. There may be an upper lobe predilection. Cavitating infarcts tend to be single and are often followed by a sizable area of consolidation .

Complications

Many potential complications have been described after cavitary pulmonary infarcts and include:

pneumothorax formation
empyema formation
lung abscess formation
bronchopleural fistula formation