Do the lung nodules caused by valley fever need to be surgically removed?
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6 doctors weighed in:
Do the lung nodules caused by valley fever need to be surgically removed?
6 doctors weighed in
Dr. Omega Edwards, m.d.
Internal Medicine - Infectious Disease
In brief: No
A lung nodule caused by coccidioidomycosis (cause of valley fever) is just a clump of inflammatory debri.
This is the bodies' way of "wrapping up" the infecting organism so that it cannot cause any further lung injury. They do not need to be surgically excised as they cannot do you any harm. Neatly packaged, these gifts await unwrapping by other micro-friends long after you are buried.
In brief: No
A lung nodule caused by coccidioidomycosis (cause of valley fever) is just a clump of inflammatory debri.
This is the bodies' way of "wrapping up" the infecting organism so that it cannot cause any further lung injury. They do not need to be surgically excised as they cannot do you any harm. Neatly packaged, these gifts await unwrapping by other micro-friends long after you are buried.
Dr. Omega Edwards, m.d.
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Dr. David Cooke
Surgery - Thoracic
In brief: Not always
Smaller nodules can be cured by antifungal medication. Larger nodules that are symptomatic, such as bleeding, or resistant to medications may need to be surgically removed.
In brief: Not always
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