Today’s blog from FLASS (Florida Lung Asthma and Sleep Specialist) is designed to bring you an understanding of a Bronchoscopy.
Here in Orlando, we comprehend that very few medical procedures strike more fear into the hearts of patients than this procedure. The idea of having cameras, instruments, or tubes pushed down their throat terrorizes some patients and causes claustrophobia in others.
To calm these fears, we are bringing you an expose of the 3 of secrets of this procedure with a scary name.
Bronchoscopy Secret # 1: A Basic Definition
Put simply, “Bronchoscopy is a procedure that lets doctors look at your lungs and air passages. It’s usually performed by a doctor that specializes (a pulmonologist) in lung disorders.
During your Bronchoscopy, you will have a thin tube, which is called a Bronchoscope passed through your nose or mouth into your throat and into your lungs. The Bronchoscope is thin and lighted. After entering the throat, this flexible tube is moved into the trachea and then airways. Because of the light, your doctor will have a great view of: voice box (larynx), your windpipe (trachea), large airways to your lungs (Bronchi) and small branches of your bronchi (bronchioles).
Bronchoscopy Secret # 2: The Rigid Bronchoscope
Your doctor has the choice between a flexible and a rigid Bronchoscope.
He also has the option of the width of the instrument which he uses. The Rigid Bronchoscope has straight tubes. It is specifically designed for use within the Bronchi. With this wonderful instrument, the doctor can do amazing things for your respiratory system: It can remove large amounts of blood or other secretions that are choking you. He can also control bleeding. This instrument assist in the removal of foreign objects. Likewise, this rigid bronchoscope will even remove diseased tissue, leaving your healthy tissue, well and happy.
Bronchoscopy Secret # 3: The Flexible Bronchoscope
The more common Bronchoscope is the flexible bronchoscope and is more often used.
It differentiates itself because it can be utilized in the smaller airways called bronchioles. With this flexible Bronchoscope, these are some of the task your doctor can 
perform:
He can administer oxygen. He can suction out secretions. He can gently remove tiny amounts of tissue. This is known as biopsy. Likewise, he can administer medicine deeply within a lung and even conduct laser therapy, should you be in need.
Some of our younger patients view the Bronchoscope as the doctor’s magic wand. Any discomfort caused by this procedure is quickly forgotten because of the dramatic result it can produce.
A Versatile Procedure
Not only can Bronchoscopy help with immediate pulmonary problems, it is also a valuable tool for diagnosis. The findings, based on Bronchoscopic examinations, can lead to other specific treatments that alleviate your suffering.
In a subsequent blog, we will pry into the secrets behind the risks of this procedure, as we continue our effort to alleviate fear with knowledge. We will take you step by step through the bronchoscopy, as though you are experiencing this procedure.