Background: Lung and airway involvement in inflammatory bowel disease are increasingly frequently reported either as an extraintestinal manifestation or as an adverse effect of therapy.
Case summary: We report a case of a patient with ulcerative colitis controlled under mesalazine treatment who presented with chronic cough and hemoptysis. Chest computed tomography and bronchoscopy findings supported tracheal involvement in ulcerative colitis; pathology examination demonstrated an unusual eosinophil-rich inflammatory pattern, and together with clinical data, a nonasthmatic eosinophilic bronchitis diagnosis was formulated. Full recovery was observed within days of mesalazine discontinuation.
Conclusion: Mesalazine-induced eosinophilic respiratory disorders have been previously reported, generally involving the lung parenchyma. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of mesalamine-induced eosinophilic involvement in the upper airway.
Keywords: Bronchitis; Case report; Drug-related side effects; Hemoptysis; Mesalamine; Ulcerative colitis.
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