Cardiopulmonary
Interventional Pulmonology
Our Interventional Pulmonology Team consists of dedicated Pulmonologists,
dedicated Respiratory Care Practitioners, OR and Radiology staff. This
team is at the forefront of innovative advanced robotic diagnostic and
treatment technology, such as robotic bronchoscopy. This breakthrough
technique allows our team to see and biopsy parts of the lung that were
previously inaccessible. It offers better precision and control when performing
biopsies on nodules in or near the airway, and it has been proven to decrease
the time from diagnosis to treatment. This technology provides many of
our patients with one day procedures that otherwise would involve surgery
and a hospital stay.
Our interventional pulmonologists perform the following procedures:
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Balloon dilation — Using a bronchoscope, a small balloon is placed into a narrowed
airway to enlarge it. Airway narrowing can lead to many different symptoms,
including shortness of breath, air trapping, poor exercise endurance,
voice change, or coughing.
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Cryosurgery and spray cryotherapy — Using either a rigid or flexible bronchoscope, cryotherapy destroys
airway lesions by freezing tissue. In cryosurgery, a probe tip is rapidly
cooled by nitrous oxide or carbon dioxide and applied directly to the
lesion to remove it. Spray cryotherapy uses liquid nitrogen to spray an
area of concern and cause cryonecrosis, or tissue death by rapid freezing.
These procedures are used together with Argon plasm coagulation (APC)
and balloon dilation to open a blocked airway.
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Airway stenting — Stents are small, cylindrical, expandable tubes, very similar
to those used by cardiologists to open arteries in the heart. Interventional
pulmonologists use stents to open airways narrowed by infection, tumors,
or scar tissue.
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Flexible bronchoscopy — We use flexible bronchoscopy to inspect a patient's airway. It
can also be used to perform washings or biopsies of the airway tissues
to look for infection, inflammation, or cancer.
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Rigid bronchoscopy — Using a solid, metal tube with a camera and light source, a rigid
bronchoscope allows for direct visualization of the airway and a variety
of diagnostic and therapeutic techniques. These options include the removal
of foreign objects inhaled into the airway and airway re-cannulization,
which opens breathing tubes blocked by tumors, infection, or scar tissue.
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Endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) and radial probe endobronchial ultrasound (REBUS) — With EBUS, the pulmonologist uses a bronchoscope equipped with
ultrasound technology. This technique allows biopsies to be performed
in multiple areas with much greater accuracy. Because the needle can be
visualized within the abnormality of interest, the risk of puncturing
a blood vessel or damaging lung tissue is minimized. This procedure is
also used to biopsy lymph nodes (tissue swellings) in the middle of the
chest (EBUS) or peripheral lung lesions (REBUS).
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Transbronchial cryobiopsy — Interstitial lung disease (ILD) represents a rare group of lung
problems caused when the supporting structure of the lung tissue, or interstitium,
is abnormal for various reasons. Using a flexible bronchoscope and cryoprobe,
tissue at the edge of the lung is biopsied to determine the underlying
cause of the ILD and help guide treatment. This procedure is beneficial
for a patient who is unable to undergo surgery or would prefer a noninvasive
approach before undergoing a surgical lung biopsy.
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
An electroencephalogram (EEG) is a test that measures electrical activity
in the brain using small, metal discs (electrodes) attached to the scalp.
Brain cells communicate via electrical impulses and are active all the
time, even during sleep. This activity shows up as wavy lines on an EEG
recording.
An EEG is one of the main diagnostic tests for epilepsy. An EEG can also
play a role in diagnosing other brain disorders.
We offer regular EEGs and Continuous EEG monitoring.
At Redlands, we offer both inpatient and outpatient services.
Cardiology Services
Our Cardiology team provides inpatient studies to neonates and adults and
outpatient studies to adults. Redlands Community Hospital Cardiology team
performs the following procedures:
- 2D Echocardiogram
- Stress Echocardiogram
- Dobutamine Echocardiogram
- Lexiscan® (regadenoson)
- Transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE)
- Bubble Studies
- Electrocardiogram
For more information on our outpatient services, please contact us at
909-335-5501 ext 5362.
