Idiopathic Pulmonary Hemosiderosis in a 8 Year Old Male Child: A Case Report

Idiopathic Pulmonary Hemosiderosis (IPH) is a rare disorder of unknown etiology characterized by Hemoptysis, iron deficiency anemia and diffuse pulmonary infiltrates. The diagnosis of Pulmonary Hemosiderosis refers to the subset of patients with Diffuse Alveolar Hemorrhage (DAH). Due to lack of pathognomonic findings, IPH diagnosis is established upon exclusion of all other possible causes of DAH in combination with specific pathologic findings revealing bland alveolar hemorrhage with absence of vasculitis and/or accumulation of immune complexes within lung parenchyma. We present a case of a 8 year old male child who presented to us in view of iron deficiency anemia requiring blood transfusions since the age of 6 years and had first episode of hemoptysis at the age of 4 years. His iron deficiency anemia coupled with chest high-resolution computed tomography scan, revealed findings compatible with diffuse alveolar hemorrhage. After excluding all other sources of bleeding through extensive gastrointestinal workup and thorough immunologic profile, video-assisted thoracic lung biopsy was performed and the diagnosis of Idiopathic Pulmonary Hemosiderosis was established.