Seventy five patients with pulmonary disease and suspected acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) underwent fibreoptic bronchoscopy with bronchoalveolar lavage. Of 54 cases of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, 53 (98%) were diagnosed by bronchoalveolar lavage. Complications were recorded in 12 instances and included pneumothorax in two and transient increase in fever and hypoxaemia in the rem...

Fibreoptic orotracheal intubation was compared with orthodox laryngoscopy and tracheal intubation using a total i.v. technique with propofol in 60 ASA I and II patients. There was no significant difference between the two techniques in haemodynamic profile (before, during and following the intubation procedure) and incidence of postoperative sore throat. Minimal oxygen saturation was 96% during...

A randomised, double-blind trial of atropine, atropine plus papaveretum, and atropine plus diazepam given intramuscularly as premedication for fibreoptic bronchoscopy in 60 patients showed no difference between the three regimens as assessed by bronchoscopist or patient. Bronchoscopists frequently attributed a sedative action to atropine alone and their assessment of tolerance and sedation was ...

Fibreoptic bronchoscopy is a useful diagnostic aid but may result in difficulties when associated with endotracheal anaesthesia. As a result, adequate ventilation may be difficult in patients with impaired pulmonary function and, in particular, in female patients because of the smaller size of the laryngeal opening. In a trial of three methods of endotracheal anaesthesia in a series of 39 patie...

Knowledge of the level of pharyngeal obstruction during sleep is an important factor in deciding whether or not a patient suffering from obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) will benefit from uvulopalatopharyngoplasty. The Muller manoeuvre has been advocated as a method of obtaining this information. We compared the findings from the technique of sleep nasendoscopy, which actually allows vi...

An analysis of 255 fibreoptic bronchoscopies showed that the major indication for bronchoscopy was suspected bronchial carcinoma (93% of cases). Of the 183 patients finally shown to have bronchial carcinoma 83% had abnormal bronchoscopy findings and 65% had bronchial biopsy specimens diagnostic of malignancy. These figures were superior to those obtainable with rigid bronchoscopy, particularly ...