[Bronchoscopic diagnosis of peripheral pulmonary foci]

Flexible fibreoptic bronchoscopy is frequently performed in patients with endoscopically not visible lesions, especially for establishing a diagnosis in patients with peripheral lung cancer. The usual method for obtaining material for histological analysis is transbronchial forceps biopsy. To gain material for cytological examination transbronchial needle aspiration, transbronchial catheter aspiration or bronchial brushing and bronchial washing can be used. The size of the lesion and its location influence the diagnostic accuracy of bronchoscopy. The reliability of cytological procedures has found general acceptance: the endoscopic investigation can be guided by the results of on-site cytology. The combination of transbronchial forceps biopsy and cytological methods increases the diagnostic yield. In a direct comparison, cytological examination of material from transbronchial needle aspiration and transbronchial catheter aspiration has been found to have a significantly higher diagnostic sensitivity than transbronchial forceps biopsy in peripheral bronchial carcinoma. While transbronchial needle aspiration makes it possible to obtain tissue from extrabronchial region, catheter aspiration provides material of a larger area of the bronchial mucosa. There is thus no need for an exact positioning of the catheter tip inside the lesion under fluoroscopic guidance.