Therapeutic effect of pulmonary lavage in vivo after inhalation of insoluble radioactive particles.

Pulmonary lavages in vivo after inhalation of 239PuO2 were conducted using more than 100 baboons. Results have permitted the definition of optimal conditions of lavage. It was shown that both lungs can be lavaged during the same sitting, and that the procedure could be applied up to 3 months after exposure with a significant efficiency. The treatment must be repeated several times because only 10-15% of the lung burden is removed during one sitting. With a schedule of ten bilateral bronchopulmonary lavages (at days 1, 4, 9, then once a week) 58% of initial lung burden is removed. In addition, up to 30% is removed by an accelerated natural clearance after lavage. No chronic histological or physiological alterations of the lungs were observed after this procedure, which seems an efficient therapy for removing inhaled insoluble radionuclides.