Bronchoscopy with transbronchial biopsies: measurement of bleeding volume and evaluation of the predictive value of coagulation tests

The objectives of this study were to measure the bleeding volume associated with fibreoptic bronchoscopy with transbronchial biopsies (TBB), to correlate it with coagulation tests and to compare bleeding volume in patients with and without lung transplant. A total of 104 consecutive TBB in 51 different patients was evaluated prospectively. Before each procedure, haemoglobin, blood platelets, prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) and bleeding time were measured. During the procedure, lavage fluid and blood were collected by suction. The haemoglobin concentration of the mixture was measured and bleeding volume was calculated. Clinically significant bleeding was arbitrarily defined as >20 mL blood present in lavage fluid. The mean+/-SD bleeding volume was 7+/-10 mL with no statistically significant difference between transplanted and nontransplanted patients. In eight procedures (7.7%) the bleeding volume was >20 mL (range 22-61 mL). Prebiopsy values for blood platelet counts, PT and aPTT did not predict a bleeding tendency in any of the procedures in which significant bleeding occurred. No correlation was found between bleeding time and bleeding volume in the 17 procedures performed in patients with a prolonged bleeding time (> or =10 min). The bleeding associated with transbronchial biopsies was usually minor and quantitatively similar in patients with or without lung transplant. Coagulation tests could not predict clinically significant bleeding, which may occur in patients with normal coagulation test results.

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