Haemoptysis. A bronchological evaluation.

A series of 342 patients with haemoptysis, who underwent bronchological examination at Päivärinne Chest Hospital during the period 1967-73, is presented. The most frequent cause of haemoptysis was bronchial carcinoma (86 cases, 25%), with chronic bronchitis in 73 cases (21.5%, inactive pulmonary tuberculosis in 33 (9.5%), bronchiectasis in 22 (t.5%), active pulmonary tuberculosis in 21 (6%) and pneumonia in 17 (5%). The cause of bleeding remained unkown in 73 cases (21.5%). Bronchoscopic findings were normal in 86 patients (25%) and only inflammatory mucosal changes were found by bronchoscopy in 181 patients (53%). A bleeding bronchial carcinoma was identified in 42 patients. The exact bleeding point was observed in the mucosa in 10 patients, and bleeding could be traced to the segmental bronchus in 18 patients, to the lobar bronchus in 2 and to the main bronchus in 3. One attack of haemoptysis, in a case of tuberculosis ended fatally. In all cases in which bleeding was still present at the time of bronchoscopy the bleeding point could be traced at least to the segmental bronchus.