indications and complications of flexible fiberoptic bronchoscopy in children: a 5-year experience at a tertiary care hospital in iran

Background: flexible fiberoptic bronchoscopy (ffb) is known as an important diagnostic and therapeutic modality in the evaluation of respiratory disorders in pediatric population. objectives: the study aims to highlight common indications and risk of complications associated with bronchoscopy in our population. methods: this retrospective evaluation was performed in all patients that underwent flexible bronchoscopy at children's medical center (affiliated to tehran university of medical sciences) between april 2011 and september 2016. results: of 800 bronchoscopies, 574 (71.7%) were performed for diagnostic and 226 (28.2%) for therapeutic purposes. major indications included radiographic abnormalities (30%), a foreign body or suspected foreign body (28.5% of all ffbs) and stridor or wheezing (25% of all fbb). the incidence of major complications associated with ffbs was 0.87%. the most frequent complication was pneumothorax, followed by lung hemorrhage, and respiratory failure. conclusions: our findings support early intervention and utilization of bronchoscopy in the pediatric population with variable respiratory complaints.