Bronchoscopy in intensive care units.

Abstract

Many situations exist imposing the use of bronchoscopy in intensive care units (ICU). There are many diagnostic and therapeutic indications. Interventional bronchoscopy represents a group of endoscopic techniques used in emergency or during the handling of different situations of airway obstruction. These situations seem quite frequent in paediatric ICU. This field has been developed with the availability of small endoscopes on the market and progress in instrumental and anaesthetic techniques.