Bronchogenic cysts are congenital. They are typically discovered in infancy or early childhood. Secondary infection of the cyst is uncommon. We present the case of a 17-year-old female who presented to the emergency department with intermediate onset of upper abdominal, and retrosternal chest pain and fever. Subsequent X-ray and computerised tomography scan showed a bronchogenic cyst. The patient underwent subacute thoracotomy where a bronchogenic cyst filled with pus was located and excised. Bronchogenic cysts can be a rare cause of retrosternal pain. Please cite this paper as: Søndergaard EB, Pedersen JH and Kleive D. Infected bronchogenic cyst causing dysphagia and retrosternal pain. Clin Respir J 2012; DOI:10.1111/j.1752-699X.2012.00296.x.