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Previous Volume 349:2465 December 18, 2003 Number 25 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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To the Editor: Collard et al. describe the diagnosis and management of an aortopulmonary fistula in a patient with hemoptysis (Sept. 4 issue).¹ The diagnosis was delayed for seven weeks while the patient underwent a battery of laboratory tests, multiple imaging studies, bronchoscopy, and even thoracoscopic lung biopsy, as well as empirical treatment with corticosteroids. The lesson is that hemoptysis in a patient with a history of thoracic aortic surgery should be considered the herald of an aortopulmonary fistula until proven otherwise. A recent review of this topic emphasized the importance of clinical suspicion, particularly when imaging studies are inconclusive.²

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