The flexible fiberoptic bronchoscopic shuttle.

The purpose of this paper is to describe a novel and practical technique for endobronchial catheter placement utilizing the flexible fiberoptic bronchoscope. Placement of endobronchial catheters via the flexible bronchoscope is limited by the small dimension of the bronchoscope's internal channel and frequently requires repeated manipulation to verify position endobronchially. We describe preliminary experience with a technique that we call the "bronchoscopic shuttle," which circumvents this limitation. The spectrum of possible clinical uses for this technique is discussed.