Aravena, Carlos; Mehta, Atul C.; Almeida, Francisco Aécio; Lamb, Carla R.; Maldonado, Fabien; & Gildea, Thomas R. (2023). Innovation in rigid bronchoscopy—past, present, and future. Journal of Thoracic Disease, 15(5), 2836–2847. https://doi.org/10.21037/jtd-22-779
More than 100 years ago, German laryngologist Gustav Killian performed the first “direct bronchoscopy” (Direkte Bronchoskopie). Using a rigid bronchoscope, he removed a foreign object from a patient’s right main bronchus. This breakthrough transformed respiratory medicine and quickly became widely adopted. In the United States, Chevalier Jackson Sr further improved the instrument, refined the technique, and made the procedure safer and more widely usable.
In the 1960s, major technological advances followed. Harold H. Hopkins and N.S. Kapany introduced optical rods and fiberoptics, which allowed Karl Storz to develop the cold light system. This greatly improved illumination inside the airways and marked the beginning of modern flexible endoscopy. These innovations made many new diagnostic and therapeutic procedures possible, including transbronchial needle biopsy, transbronchial lung biopsy, airway electrosurgery, and cryotherapy.
Later, Jean-François Dumon advanced the use of the Nd:YAG laser within the airways and developed the Dumon silicone stent. These innovations helped establish the field of interventional pulmonology and renewed interest in rigid bronchoscopy.
Today, the field continues to evolve with improvements in airway stenting, medical instruments, and physician training. Robotic technologies for rigid bronchoscopy are now being developed and may further transform pulmonary medicine. This review summarizes the major milestones in rigid bronchoscopy from its origins to the modern era.
Figure 1 Chevalier Jackson teaching medical students. Reproduced with permission from the American Thoracic Society (7).