Increases in diagnostic yield of fiberoptic bronchoscopy by fluoroscopy.

Fiberoptic bronchoscopy was performed in 46 patients in the evaluation of pulmonary lesions. Twenty-five of the patients had lung cancer; the remainder had benign lesions. Definitive diagnosis was established in all patients by a combination of forceps biopsy, brush biopsy, bronchial aspiration, and post-bronchoscopy sputum studies. All endoscopically visible lesions were diagnosed by forceps biopsy. Fluoroscopic localization of biopsy forceps and brush made the yield in peripheral, nonvisualized lesions almost equal to that of more central lesions. Fluoroscopic control markedly increases the diagnostic yield in fiberoptic bronchoscopy.