005. History of the recently established bronchoscopy unit of the pulmonology clinic of lamia’s general hospital

Objective: The Bronchoscopy Unit of General Hospital of Lamia provides the necessity of six counties in Thessalia and Central Greece. The first bronchoscopy was performed during Christmas of 2012 while from the opening (February 14^th, 2014), the unit is presenting an increasing activity (in number and variety of medical practice).

Methods: From December 21^st in 2012 to September 15^th in 2014, were performed 158 bronchoscopic examinations in 152 patients (hospitalized and outpatients), 130 men and 28 women, with an average age 72.4 (29 to 89) years old. There were accomplished 80 biopsies (bronchial, transbronchial), 83 brushing, collected 57 cultures for common bacteria and 86 for och-bacilli (acid-fast microscopy in 12), 20 conventional transbronchial needle aspiration (TBNA), two transbronchial biopsies, seven BAL, 25 bronchial toilets in elderly patients and were removed two foreign bodies (one bone segment surrounding by granulomatous tissue and one segment of animal bowel-“kokoretsi”).

Results: We observed gradual increase of the incoming patients [Quarterly: 5(1^st-3^rd/2013), 14(4^th-6^th/2013), 17(7^th-9^th/2013), 21(10^th-12^th/2013), 32(1^st-3^rd/2014), 38(4^th-6^th/2014), 31(6^th-Middle 9^th/2014)]. There were diagnosed 70 cases of lung cancer in 93 patients (75.3%) {12 small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC), 57 non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) [28 squamous, 25 adenocarcinomas, one combo (adeno- and squamous carcinoma), one BAC και two suspicious samples for cancer]}. 49/49 were diagnosed in evident endobronchial lesion (100%) and 21/44 in non-revealing bronchoscopy (47.8%). Biopsy confirmed diagnosis in 52/93, brushing in 31/93, ΤΒΝΑ alone in 4/8 while washing alone in 3/93 patients. Five cases of active tuberculosis were diagnosed (4 M. Τuberculosis, 1 M. Smegmatis), two cases of sarcoidosis, one metastatic (uroepithelial) carcinoma, four cases of granulomatic tissue, one lipoid pneumonia, one sarcomatoid carcinoma of the lung, while the cultures isolated two samples with Pseudomonas A., two with Klebsiella sp., one with Acinetobacter Β., two with Αspergillus F., two with Nocardia A., and one with Haemophilus Infl.

Conclusions: The Broncoscopy Unit of General Hospital of Lamia attempts to help (in the basis of science and documented literature) patients of central Greece at the increasing need for endoscopic intervention and diagnosis of diseases of respiratory system, in paths of modern, interventional pulmonology.

Keywords: Bronchoscopy; transbronchial needle aspiration (TBNA); forceps