Mediastinal Carinal Bronchogenic Cysts

Bronchogenic cysts are of congenital origin, arising from the tracheobronchial tree. Although they were once considered rare entities, many have recently been discovered in mass roentgenographic surveys of the chest. Mediastinal bronchogenic cysts are believed to originate in an abnormality in the development of the tracheobronchial tree. The primitive foregut gives rise to the respiratory tract and to the esophagus, the dorsal segment forming the esophagus, while the ventral component forms the trachea. Bronchogenic cysts occur when there is abnormal budding or branching of the tracheobronchial tree. The majority of the cysts are in relation to the trachea or to the main bronchi. Maier has given an acceptable classification of bronchogenic cysts as follows: 1.  Paratracheal 2.  Carinal 3.  Hilar 4.  Paraesophageal 5.  Miscellaneous We are limiting our discussion in this paper to carinal bronchogenic cysts, reporting 3 cases. Pathology: Carinal bronchogenic cysts are usually single, rarely lobulated, thin...