Therapeutic bronchoalveolar lavage for pulmonary alveolar proteinosis in an infant

A 2-year-old male infant suffering from pulmonary alveolar proteinosis was treated by four unilateral bronchoalveolar lavages (BAL) in a 12-month period. The lavages were performed under general anaesthesia and controlled ventilation by introducing a fibrescope (3.6 mm external diameter) though either a tracheal tube (4.5 mm internal diameter) or a rigid bronchoscope. Each lobe of the lung was successively catheterized and the segments were washed separately with prewarmed saline solution injected through the side channel of the fibrescope. The described technique allows to perform BAL in safe conditions (i.e., controlled airways) in infants weighing more than 9 kg.