Thoracic Key

Introduction and Historical Background Gustav Killian performed the first rigid bronchoscopy in 1897 to extract a piece of a pork bone from the right main bronchus. This innovation resulted in…

Introduction and Historical Background Flexible bronchoscopy (FB) is one of the prime examples of an area of pulmonary medicine transformed by technological advances. Today it has become one of the…

Introduction Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the most frequent intensive care unit (ICU)–acquired infection among patients who are treated with mechanical ventilation. In contrast to infections of other organs (e.g., urinary…

Introduction Respiratory impairment refers to an alteration in lung structure and/or lung function that results in decreased or limited functional ability and is usually manifested by dyspnea on exertion. Many…

Introduction Dyspnea (Greek dys, meaning “painful,” “difficult,” and pneuma, meaning “breath”) is a clinical term for the sensation of breathlessness or shortness of breath experienced by both normal subjects and…

Introduction Pain is a complex subjective experience that varies from person to person in its quality, intensity, duration, location, frequency, and associated features. Its perception is influenced by a subject’s…

Introduction Thoracic application of ultrasonography can be broadly divided into lung and pleural imaging. Additional applications designed for the evaluation of patients with dyspnea include vascular scanning for the diagnosis…

Introduction Taking a careful and complete history and performing a thorough physical examination are hallmarks of the good internist and one of the distinguishing characteristics of a master clinician. The…

Introduction The clinical microbiology laboratory plays a critical role in diagnosis and management of patients with lower respiratory tract infections. By providing pathogen detection and identification and susceptibility testing the…

Introduction The human lung has a large surface area, which for an average-size person approximates half a doubles tennis court, thus maximizing the approximation and apposition of capillaries to the…