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Published on: January 13, 2017
Prospective randomized trial comparing oxygen administration during nasal flexible bronchoscopy : oral vs nasal
T W McCain1, D P Dunagan, N E Adair
1Department of Internal Medicine, Section of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA.
Study Objectives:
To determine the optimal method of delivering supplemental oxygen during flexible bronchoscopy (FB).
Design:
Prospective study.
Setting:
University medical center.
Patients:
Ninety-seven consecutive patients undergoing outpatient nasal FB during a 7-month period.
Intervention:
During FB, delivery of oxygen was alternated weekly and administered by nasal cannula either nasally (52 patients) or orally (45 patients). Prior to the procedure, patients completed a questionnaire regarding oral or nasal breathing preferences, history of sinus disease, allergy history, and perceived degree of nasal congestion.
Results:
Comparison of oxygen delivery groups demonstrated no significant difference in oxygen requirements (4.1 L/min nasal vs 3.8 L/min oral, p = 0.63), overall saturation nadir (90.9% nasal vs 91.4% oral, p = 0.85), or average saturation (95.8% nasal vs 95.7% oral, p = 0.57). No correlation between subjective symptoms or sinus or allergy history was found for oxygen requirements, average saturation, or saturation nadir.
Conclusions:
These data suggest that during nasal FB, no discernible difference exists between administration of oxygen using cannulas placed either nasally or orally.
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