Mucoid impaction of bronchi. A scanning electron microscopic study.

An example of mucoid impaction in the culminal bronchus in a potentially asthmatic child is related. Histological sections of the plug showed the characteristic pattern with clusters of eosinophils and other cells within the impacted mucus, which consisted of mainly sulfated glycoproteins. Scanning electron microscopy revealed new data on the three-dimensional structure of the plug. Ten to fifteen micron thick fascicles of partially rolled-up mucous fibres surrounded wide meshes filled with eosinophils and other components. As far as can be determined, this is the first reported ultrastructural description of this particular lesion.