Abstract
Objectives This article evaluates the immediate success, recurrence rate, complications, and
the culprit vessel of bronchial artery embolization (BAE) in patients presenting with
hemoptysis.
Materials and Methods All patients who underwent BAE from July 1, 2018 to August 31, 2021 were included.
BAE was done for moderate to severe hemoptysis or for mild hemoptysis which was recurrent
and not controlled by medical management. Patients referred for surgical intervention
and hemoptysis controlled on medical management were excluded.
Results One hundred and thirty patients underwent BAE in the study period. Mean age was 41.5
years and majority (73.1%) was male. Forty-three (33.1%) patients had mild, 46 (35.4%)
had moderate, and 41 (31.5%) with the duration of symptoms ranging from 3 days to
25 years. Most common culprit vessel was posterior intercostal artery closely followed
by the intercostobronchial artery. Hypervascularity was the most common angiographic
abnormality encountered. On an average, 2.75 vessels were embolized per BAE with a
wide range of 1 to 8 vessels. Hemoptysis control was seen in 96.1% patients immediately,
90.7 % at 1 month, 82.3 % at 3 months, and 66.9 % at 6 months. Overall recurrence
was seen in 43 patients (33.1%). Chest pain was the most common minor side effect
occurring in 77.1% cases.
Conclusion BAE is a safe and effective procedure that can be performed routinely in patients
presenting with moderate to massive hemoptysis or with mild hemoptysis refractory
to medical management.
Keywords
bronchial artery embolization - hemoptysis - recurrence - PVA
