Interventional pulmonology uses thin scopes and small instruments to diagnose and treat problems inside the airways and in the space around the lungs, without open surgery. It is used when a scan shows a nodule, a mass, enlarged lymph nodes, fluid around the lung or a narrowed airway, and a tissue sample or relief of symptoms is needed.

Patients looking for a lung specialist in Mumbai at Apex are first assessed with an examination, a chest X-ray and a chest CT scan. A procedure is advised only when it will change the diagnosis or the treatment plan. Most are done under sedation or anaesthesia, and recovery is usually quicker than after surgery.

Some conditions need more than one step. A patient with a lung mass may need an airway sample first, then staging of the chest lymph nodes, before the oncology team plans treatment. The team explains the sequence and what to expect at each stage.

Interventional pulmonology services at Apex include:

• Bronchoscopy and Biopsy: examination of the airways with a flexible camera, with washings, brushings and biopsies taken to find the cause of a persistent cough, coughing blood or an abnormal scan.
• EBUS and TBNA: ultrasound-guided and needle sampling of chest lymph nodes and masses beside the airways, used for diagnosis and for staging lung cancer.
• Pleural Procedures: thoracentesis, pleuroscopy, pleurodesis and indwelling pleural catheters for fluid around the lung, with the choice depending on the cause and how often the fluid returns.
• Airway Procedures: airway stenting, cryotherapy and rigid bronchoscopy to open narrowed or blocked airways and to remove foreign bodies or clots.
• Advanced Lung Treatments: endobronchial valves for selected patients with severe emphysema and bronchial thermoplasty for selected adults with severe asthma that remains uncontrolled.