The diagnostic contribution of bronchoalveolar lavage to lung cryo-transbronchial biopsy in interstitial lung diseases.
Adding bronchoalveolar lavage to cryobiopsy boosted multidisciplinary diagnosis in interstitial lung disease
The diagnostic contribution of bronchoalveolar lavage to lung cryo-transbronchial biopsy in interstitial lung diseases.
In interstitial lung diseases (interstitial lung diseases), achieving a definitive diagnosis based on clinical and radiological findings alone can be challenging, often necessitating lung biopsy.
In this study, we aimed to evaluate the diagnostic contribution of bronchoalveolar lavage (bronchoalveolar lavage) performed simultaneously with c-TBB.
Patients’ clinical and radiological features, bronchoalveolar lavage and c-TBB findings, and any complications were recorded.
Of the included patients, 51.2% (n = 65) were male, with a mean age of 60 years (range: 19–79).
Histopathological diagnosis was achieved with c-TBB in 76.4% of cases (n = 97), with the most common diagnoses being fibrotic NSIP (31.5%, n = 40) and non-fibrotic NSIP (12.6%, n = 16).
The contribution rate of bronchoalveolar lavage in patients with a histopathological diagnosis was 30.9% (n = 30), and 46.6% (n = 14) in those without a histopathological diagnosis.
No adverse events related to bronchoalveolar lavage were observed, while complications occurred in 42.5% of patients undergoing c-TBB.
Our study demonstrates that the combined use of bronchoalveolar lavage and c-TBB provides significant added value to the multidisciplinary diagnostic process in interstitial lung diseases.
Performing simultaneous bronchoalveolar lavage in patients undergoing c-TBB can be considered a safe and effective approach that enhances diagnostic yield in the multidisciplinary evaluation of interstitial lung diseases.