title: Visceral pleural perforation in two cases of ultrathin bronchoscopy.
abstract: Recently, ultrathin bronchoscopes with a thinner external diameter, greater visual range, improved visibility, and a larger working channel have been developed. The utility of a 2.8-mm diameter ultrathin bronchoscope in diagnosing peripheral pulmonary nodules has been reported by some authors. While the feasibility of approaching peripheral pulmonary lesions is attractive, peculiar complications that have not been experienced with standard bronchoscopy may occur. We report two cases in which pneumothoraces occurred because their visceral pleuras were perforated with an ultrathin bronchoscope during the procedure. The peculiar mechanism of pneumothorax in relation to ultrathin bronchoscopy is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Respiratory Medicine, Nagoya Medical Center, 4-1-1 Sannomaru, Naka-ku, Nagoya 460-0001, Japan. Masahideo@aol.com
authors.forename: Masahide
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Oki
authors.forename: Hideo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Saka
authors.forename: Chiyoe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kitagawa
authors.forename: Chieko
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sako
authors.forename: Shigeru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kawada
authors.forename: Kouki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mori
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D020680:Bronchoscopes / Q000009:adverse effects*; D001999:Bronchoscopy / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D005336:Fiber Optic Technology; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D010994:Pleura / Q000293:injuries*; D011030:Pneumothorax / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D011300:Preoperative Care / Q000379:methods; D018570:Risk Assessment; D014781:Viscera / Q000293:injuries