Purpose
Some patients with diffuse interstitial lung disease (ILD) undergo bronchoscopy with transbronchial biopsy (TBB) as part of their diagnostic evaluation. It is unclear what the incidence and risk factors for pneumothorax (PTX) following TBB are in this patient population.
Methods
Ninety-seven subjects with pulmonary fibrosis who underwent a research bronchoscopy with TBB as part of the multicenter Correlating Outcomes with Biochemical Markers to Estimate Time-progression in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (COMET) trial were retrospectively reviewed. We compared subjects who developed a PTX during research bronchoscopy with TBB versus those who did not.
Results
Seven patients (7.2%) experienced a PTX during research bronchoscopy with TBB. Subjects who experienced PTX during TBB had significantly lower DLCO percent predicted (29 ± 8 versus 45 ± 15, P=0.006) and had lower resting room air saturation of peripheral oxygen (SPO2) on 6-minute walk testing (91±10 versus 95±3, P=0.02). No differences between groups were found with respect to age, gender, race, BMI, HRCT characteristics, or number of transbronchial biopsies performed.
Conclusion
The incidence of PTX following research bronchoscopy with TBB in patients with pulmonary fibrosis was found to be 7.2% in this study. Patients who developed a pneumothorax had greater impairments in gas exchange at baseline evidenced by a lower DLCO % predicted and a lower resting room air SPO2 when compared to subjects without PTX as a complication.