Newborn with Congenital Pulmonary Malformation and Severely Enlarged Lung Successfully Undergoes ECMO-Assisted Surgery

Left Lung Nonviable, Right Lung Functioning at Only 40 Percent
Asan Medical Center Seoul: "Rapid Treatment Based on Korea's Most Extensive ECMO Experience"

A newborn who suffered from severe respiratory failure due to a congenital pulmonary malformation has recovered and been discharged after undergoing ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) assisted surgery.

Professor Byungseob Lee of the Neonatology Department at Asan Medical Center is examining Hangyeol, who is about to be discharged. Asan Medical Center

On April 20, Asan Medical Center Seoul announced that the team led by Professor Byungseob Lee from the Neonatology Department successfully treated baby Song Han-gyeol, who had slim chances of survival due to a severe pulmonary malformation that caused his lung to expand to about twice its normal size immediately after birth, using ECMO-assisted pulmonary mass removal surgery. The patient made a healthy recovery and was discharged this past March.

Immediately after birth, the left pulmonary mass in the patient expanded to more than twice the normal size, compressing both the heart and the right lung. The right lung was functioning at only about 40 percent of its normal capacity. With the onset of pneumothorax and pulmonary hypertension, the patient developed severe respiratory failure, and oxygen saturation could not be maintained.

The medical team began ECMO treatment on the second day after birth. ECMO is a device that circulates blood outside the body to supply oxygen and is used in patients with severe cardiopulmonary failure. However, its use is limited in newborns due to the risks of complications such as catheter insertion and bleeding.

On the thirteenth day after birth, while maintaining ECMO, the medical team performed a thoracotomy to remove the mass in the upper lobe of the left lung. The surgery was performed by Professor Choi Sehoon from the Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery at Asan Medical Center Seoul.

The final diagnosis for the patient was congenital bronchial atresia accompanied by lymphatic and venous malformations, a rare disease reported to occur in approximately 1 in 100,000 people.

Even after surgery, the patient’s condition remained unstable, including a recurrence of pulmonary hypertension. The medical team provided intensive care, combining echocardiography-guided medication adjustment, inhaled nitric oxide therapy, and high-frequency ventilation. As a result, about one month after surgery, the ventilator was removed. Pre-discharge examinations showed that the right lung function had returned to normal, and the left lung had recovered more than two-thirds of its function.

Han-gyeol’s mother, Ms. Cheon, expressed her gratitude, saying, “The reason Han-gyeol is still with me is thanks to the medical staff at Asan Medical Center Seoul. I almost lost hope myself, but because they believed in and saved Han-gyeol, I will do my best to raise him healthy.”

Professor Lee stated, “Han-gyeol’s pulmonary mass was abnormally large and significantly affected his cardiopulmonary function, so we anticipated that conventional anesthesia and surgery would be difficult compared to other babies. We expect that once his remaining lung grows further, Han-gyeol will be able to live a healthy life, just like other children.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.