Chest
Clinical InvestigationBronchoalveolar Lavage Cell Populations in the Diagnosis of Sarcoidosis
Section snippets
Study Population
Between February 1, 1984, and February 1, 1989, fiberoptic bronchoscopy (FOB) was performed by members of the Section of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine on 2,692 patients, 592 of whom had bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). The indications for BAL were usually the evaluation of diffuse or focal pulmonary infiltrates on a chest roentgenogram. In rare instances, BAL was performed on patients with normal chest x-ray films but suspected cryptic interstitial lung disease (ILD). Bronchoalveolar lavage
Diseases With Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid Lymphocytosis
One hundred thirty-eight (23.3 percent) of 592 BALF specimens obtained over the 5-year period contained 16 percent or more lymphocytes as determined by the differential cell count. Ten patients with BALF lymphocytosis were excluded from further analysis. These included seven patients with AIDS, one patient who had coexisting sarcoidosis and squamous cell carcinoma of the lung, one patient with a clinical presentation and BALF results consistent with sarcoidosis but no biopsy confirmation of the
Discussion
In 1981, Crystal and colleagues9 stated that “other than sarcoidosis, the only lung disorders known to be associated with increased proportions of lymphocytes in lavage are hypersensitivity pneumonitis, tuberculosis, and lymphoma involving the lung parenchyma.” Four years later, Chretien and colleagues15 expanded the list to include tuberculosis and other pulmonary infections, malignancy, asthma, and pneumoconiosis. The current study further expands the list of diseases associated with
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
Joni Noges provided technical assistance.
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Manuscript received July 27; revision accepted December 17.