Bronchoscopy

A bronchoscope is a thin, flexible tube, roughly 5 to 6 mm in diameter, fitted with a high-resolution camera and a light source at its tip. It's passed through the nose or mouth, down past the vocal cords, through the trachea, and into the bronchial tree, the branching network of airways that leads into both lungs. We can see the airway walls in real time on a monitor. Any abnormality, redness, swelling, narrowing, an unusual growth, or a mucus plug is visible directly, not interpreted from a scan.

The procedure serves two broad purposes. Diagnostic bronchoscopy helps us identify what's causing a patient's symptoms. Therapeutic bronchoscopy lets us actually treat the problem through the same instrument, without open surgery.

Bronchoscopy becomes necessary in several clinical situations:

• A persistent cough lasting more than eight weeks that hasn't responded to treatment
• Haemoptysis - coughing up blood, even in small amounts, always warrants proper investigation
• Abnormal findings on chest X-ray or CT scan that require tissue confirmation before treatment can begin
• Suspected tuberculosis or fungal lung infection, where sputum test results have been inconclusive
• Recurrent pneumonia affecting the same lobe, which may point to an underlying airway obstruction
• Foreign body inhalation - more common in children than most parents expect
• Unexplained pleural effusion (fluid around the lung), which may require a related procedure called medical thoracoscopy, performed routinely in our unit for both diagnosis and pleurodesis

• Lung cancer - confirming the diagnosis and assessing how far the tumour extends into the airway
• Pulmonary tuberculosis, particularly in smear-negative cases where sputum results are inconclusive
• Interstitial lung diseases, where a transbronchial biopsy retrieves tissue from deep within the lung parenchyma
• Sarcoidosis and other granulomatous conditions
• Endobronchial lesions and tracheal narrowing
• New lung infections in ICU patients on ventilators, where targeted airway sampling guides treatment

Before the procedure:

• Fast for at least six to eight hours, no food, no water
• Blood-thinning medications are reviewed and may be paused temporarily
• Your doctor will ask about allergies, current medications, and your overall health status

On the day:

• A local anaesthetic spray is applied to the throat and nasal passage to numb the area
• A mild intravenous sedative is given; you remain conscious but relaxed; most patients remember very little afterward
• The bronchoscope is passed in gently; a straightforward diagnostic procedure typically takes 30 to 45 minutes, and therapeutic procedures may take longer During the procedure, the following may be performed through the bronchoscope's working

channel:

• Biopsy — tissue samples collected using forceps for laboratory analysis
• TBNA (Transbronchial Needle Aspiration) — needle sampling of lymph nodes adjacent to the airway, particularly useful for staging lung cancer or diagnosing mediastinal disease
• Bronchoalveolar Lavage (BAL) — wash fluid instilled and collected for microbiological or cytological testing

After the Procedure:

• Recovery is generally smooth after the procedure.
• A mild sore throat, slight hoarseness, and increased cough are common in the first 24 hours and settle on their own.
• Do not eat or drink until the throat numbness wears off completely, usually around two hours.
• Arrange for someone to take you home; driving the same day is not advisable due to sedation.
• Biopsy results typically take three to five working days.
• Microbiological cultures may take longer, especially for TB or fungal infections.
• Possible but uncommon complications include minor bleeding at the biopsy site, a temporary drop in oxygen levels, or, rarely, a small pneumothorax.
• The best bronchoscopy doctors in Navi Mumbai, at UMC Hospitals, monitor the patients closely after the procedure.

Our Department of Pulmonology is equipped with an advanced video bronchoscopy system, enabling high-resolution airway visualization alongside a full range of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, from transbronchial biopsies and TBNA to stenting, tumour ablation, and foreign body removal. UMC Hospitals offers the best bronchoscopy treatment in Navi Mumbai, where every procedure is conducted by experienced pulmonologists in a monitored, patient-safe environment.