If granulation tissue grows over the injured site, it can cause stenosis of the airway, after a week to a month.[4] The granulation tissue must be surgically excised.[26] Delayed diagnosis of a bronchial rupture increases risk of infection and lengthens hospital stay.[28] People with a narrowed airway may suffer dyspnea, coughing, wheezing, respiratory tract infection, and difficulty with clearing secretions.[14] If the bronchiole is completely obstructed, atelectasis occurs: the alveoli of the lung collapse.[4] Lung tissue distal to a completely obstructed bronchiole often does not become infected. Because it is filled with mucus, this tissue remains functional.[15] When the secretions are removed, the affected portion of the lung is commonly able to function almost normally.[29] However, infection is common in lungs distal to a partially obstructed bronchiole.[15] Infected lung tissue distal to a stricture can be damaged, and wheezing and coughing may develop due to the narrowing.[13] In addition to pneumonia, the stenosis may cause bronchiectasis, in which bronchi are dilated, to develop.[15] Even after an airway with a stricture is restored to normal, the resulting loss of lung function may be permanent.[15]