Bronchoscopy and lavage in management of pulmonary complications of cystic fibrosis.

This article presents our experience with bronchoscopy as a therapeutic and diagnostic 
tool in the management of patients with cystic fibrosis. The results 
from therapeutic bronchoscopy and bronchial irrigation in cystic fibrosis patients have 
been quite impressive. Levels of blood gas after the procedure have 
generally shown improvement. The vital capacity and FEF1 in general have 
shown small but consistent improvements. The most dramatic effect has been 
the patient's own assessment of the operation. These patients state that 
their breathing is less labored in that it is less rapid 
and much deeper. Bronchoscopy offers an effective therapeutic tool in the 
management of pulmonary complications of cystic fibrosis. Unfortunately, the benefit is 
short-lived and repeated bronchoscopic procedures are often necessary. It must be 
accepted that there is a point in time when the cardiopulmonary 
state of a patient's cystic fibrosis may have progressed beyond salvageable 
limits. It is our conviction that earlier bronchoscopy and thorough bronchial 
irrigation may prevent the critical pulmonary event which is followed inevitably 
by progressive deterioration of the pulmonary status of patients with cystic 
fibrosis. 