Bronchoscopy as a supplement to computed tomography in patients with haemoptysis may be unnecessary

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Abstract
BackgroundHaemoptysis is a common symptom and can be an early sign of lung cancer. Careful investigation of patients with haemoptysis may lead to early diagnosis. The strategy for investigation of these patients, however, is still being debated.ObjectivesWe studied whether the combination of computed tomography (CT) and bronchoscopy had a higher sensitivity for malignant and non-malignant causes of haemoptysis than CT alone.MethodsThe study was a retrospective, non-randomised, two-centre study and included patients who were referred from primary care for the investigation of haemoptysis.ResultsA total of 326 patients were included in the study (mean age 60.5 [SD 15.3] years, 63.3% male). The most common aetiologies of haemoptysis were cryptogenic (52.5%), pneumonia (16.3%), emphysema (8.0%), bronchiectasis (5.8%) and lung cancer (4.0%). In patients diagnosed with lung cancer, bronchoscopy, CT and the combination of bronchoscopy and CT had a sensitivity of 0.61, 0.92 (p<0.05) and 0.97 (p=0.58), respectivel...

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