Does massive hemoptysis always merit diagnostic bronchoscopy?

Yes, all patients with massive hemoptysis should undergo diagnostic bronchoscopy. The procedure plays an important role in protecting the airway, maintaining ventilation, finding the site and underlying cause of the bleeding, and in some cases stopping the bleeding, either temporarily or definitively.

Frightening to patients, massive hemoptysis is a medical emergency and demands immediate attention by an experienced pulmonary team.¹ Hemoptysis can be the initial presentation of an underlying infectious, autoimmune, or malignant disorder (Table 1).² Fortunately, most cases of hemoptysis are not massive or life-threatening.¹

WHAT IS ‘MASSIVE’ HEMOPTYSIS?

Numerous studies have defined massive hemoptysis on the basis of the volume of blood lost over time, eg, more than 1 L in 24 hours or more than 400 mL in 6 hours.

Ibrahim³ has proposed that we move away from using the word “massive,” which is not useful, and instead think in terms of “life-threatening” hemoptysis, defined as any of the following:

• More than 100 mL of blood lost in 24 hours (a low number, but blood loss is hard to estimate accurately)
• Causing abnormal gas exchange due to airway obstruction
• Causing hemodynamic instability.

In this article, we use the traditional “massive” terminology.

BRONCHOSCOPY IS SUPERIOR TO IMAGING FOR DIAGNOSIS

Radiography can help identify the side or the site of bleeding in 33% to 82% of patients, and computed tomography can in 70% to 88.5%.⁴ Magnetic resonance imaging may also have a role; one study found it useful in cases of thoracic endometriosis during the quiescent stage.⁵ However, transferring a patient who is actively bleeding out of the intensive care unit for imaging can be challenging.

Flexible bronchoscopy is superior to radiographic imaging in evaluating massive hemoptysis: it can be performed at the bed-side and can include therapeutic procedures to control the bleeding until the patient can undergo a definitive therapeutic procedure.⁶ It has been found helpful in identifying the side of bleeding in 73% to 93% of cases of massive hemoptysis.⁶

However, one should consider starting the procedure with a rigid bronchoscope, which protects the airway better and allows for better ventilation during the procedure than a flexible one. One can use it to isolate the nonbleeding lung and to apply pressure to the bleeding site if it is in the main bronchus.⁷ Measuring 12 mm in diameter, a rigid scope cannot go as far into the lung as a flexible bronchoscope (measuring 6.4 mm), but a flexible bronchoscope can be introduced through the rigid bronchoscope to go further in.