| Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of bronchoscopyin patients with normal chest X-ray.Method: The medical records and bronchoscopic results of 964 patients with normalchest X-ray from the first affiliated hospital of Zhejiang university were reviewed.The diagnostic value was expressed as follow: diagnostic rate = number of patients inwhom a specific diagnosis was made through bronchoscopy / number of patients inwhom bronchoscopy was performed; detection rate of lung cancer = number ofpatients in whom lung cancer was detected / number of patients in whombronchoscopy was performed.Result: The diagnostic rate was 6.85%, and detection rate of lung cancer was 3.63%totally in the patients with normal chest X-ray. The patients with aspiration,hoarseness, or haemoptysis accompanied with dyspnea had markedly elevateddiagnostic rate that was respectively 43.75%, 24.14%, and 23.81%. The patients withhaemoptysis accompanied with dyspnea had an elevated detection rate of lungcancer(18.75%).Conclusion: Bronchoscopy might not be firstly recommended in patients with normalchest X-ray because of the low diagnostic rate except for the patients with aspiration,hoarseness, or haemoptysis accompanied with dyspnea. |
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