Medical Thoracoscopy

The second most significant endoscopic method in respiratory medicine after bronchoscopy is medical thoracoscopy/pleuroscopy, which is being utilised more often by chest doctors. It is regarded as a key component of a specialised pleural illness service as well as one of the primary subspecialties of interventional pulmonology/pneumology.

Medical thoracoscopy/pleuroscopy can be performed in an endoscopy suite under local anaesthesia or conscious sedation, in contrast to “surgical” thoracoscopy, which is more appropriately known as “video-assisted thoracic surgery” (VATS) and is performed in an operating room under general anaesthesia with selective intubation. Non-disposable rigid or semi-flexible (semi-rigid) instruments are used. Consequently, medical thoracoscopy and pleuroscopy are far less intrusive and costly.The primary indications for medical thoracoscopy and pleuroscopy are summarised and detailed in depth in and. For many years, the European Respiratory Society School has offered practical training in medical thoracoscopy and pleuroscopy. More recently, a DVD on the subject was created.