European Respiratory Society guidelines for the management of adult bronchiectasis

Eva Polverino, Pieter C. Goeminne, Melissa J. McDonnell, Stefano Aliberti, Sara E. Marshall, Michael R. Loebinger, Marlene Murris, Rafael Canton, Antoni Torres, Katerina Dimakou, Anthony De Soyza, Adam T. Hill, Charles S. Haworth, Montserrat Vendrell, Felix C. Ringshausen, Dragan Subotic, Robert Wilson, Jordi Vilaro, Bjorn Stallberg, Tobias WelteGernot Rohde, Francesco Blasi, Stuart Elborn, Marta Almagro, Alan Timothy, Thomas Ruddy, Thomy Tonia, David Rigau, James D. Chalmers*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Bronchiectasis in adults is a chronic disorder associated with poor quality of life and frequent exacerbations in many patients. There have been no previous international guidelines.

The European Respiratory Society guidelines for the management of adult bronchiectasis describe the appropriate investigation and treatment strategies determined by a systematic review of the literature.

A multidisciplinary group representing respiratory medicine, microbiology, physiotherapy, thoracic surgery, primary care, methodology and patients considered the most relevant clinical questions (for both clinicians and patients) related to management of bronchiectasis. Nine key clinical questions were generated and a systematic review was conducted to identify published systematic reviews, randomised clinical trials and observational studies that answered these questions. We used the GRADE approach to define the quality of the evidence and the level of recommendations. The resulting guideline addresses the investigation of underlying causes of bronchiectasis, treatment of exacerbations, pathogen eradication, long term antibiotic treatment, anti-inflammatories, mucoactive drugs, bronchodilators, surgical treatment and respiratory physiotherapy.

These recommendations can be used to benchmark quality of care for people with bronchiectasis across Europe and to improve outcomes.

Original languageEnglish
Article number1700629
Number of pages23
JournalEuropean Respiratory Journal
Volume50
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Sept 2017

Keywords

  • CYSTIC-FIBROSIS BRONCHIECTASIS
  • RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED-TRIAL
  • OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY-DISEASE
  • QUALITY-OF-LIFE
  • PSEUDOMONAS-AERUGINOSA INFECTION
  • CHRONIC BRONCHIAL INFECTION
  • PLACEBO-CONTROLLED TRIAL
  • LUNG-FUNCTION DECLINE
  • LONG-TERM
  • DOUBLE-BLIND

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