Pediatric Pulmonology Leader Brings Bronchoscopy Benefits to Hackensack Meridian Children’s Health

For more than 20 years, interventional bronchoscopy has been used to provide minimally invasive lung and airway diagnostic and therapeutic interventions for adults. These invaluable techniques were not available to pediatric patients with lung disease until recently. Although the equipment is more readily available, the technique has not been widely adapted due to limited experience among pediatric pulmonologists.

Now, Hackensack Meridian Children’s Health is bringing the benefits of interventional bronchoscopy to children across the region.

Over the past decade, board-certified pediatric pulmonologist and the new chair of the Department of Pediatrics Alfin G. Vicencio, M.D., has pioneered these new techniques and expanded the use of interventional bronchoscopy in children. Alongside Hackensack University Medical Center’s Joseph M. Sanzari Children’s Hospital pediatric emergency medicine and pediatric pulmonology specialist Donna Lee, M.D., Dr. Vicencio will continue to demonstrate the potential applications and advantages of this minimally invasive treatment option through research and education. The division of pediatric pulmonology hopes to expand the use of interventional bronchoscopy in the pediatric setting and develop a regional referral program for diagnosing and treating pediatric patient with difficult airway and lung diseases.

Traditional diagnostic flexible bronchoscopy in pediatric patients only allow visualization of airway and obtain fluid sample for analysis. Occasionally flexible bronchoscopy and be utilized to clear airway secretions/mucus. Advances in pediatric bronchoscopes now allows same interventional bronchoscopy available to adults to be used in young children. Interventional bronchoscopy will now allow pediatric pulmonologists to collect tissue samples, remove foreign objects, widen airways, and perform other procedures. Ability to perform advanced procedures through interventional bronchoscopy will decrease the need for a more invasive procedure, such as chest surgery.

“In certain situations, interventional bronchoscopy may offer an alternative to open lung surgery or video-assisted thoracic surgery in children,” said Dr. Lee. “Our goal is to build a pediatric interventional bronchoscopy program that allows us to become a regional referral center for advanced diagnostics and therapeutics — so patients can receive their care right here in New Jersey, without the need to travel to Philadelphia or New York.”

Learn more about our pediatric pulmonary and lung surgery innovations.