ABSTRACT
Like the endobronchial biopsy, bronchial brushings and washings are best for sampling disease processes intrinsic to the larger airways and endobronchial tumors. A fine, bristled conical brush is used to sample mucosal lesions. The brush is rubbed against the airway surface to collect cells forcibly into the bristles. Once removed from the patient, the brush may be smeared directly onto slides, which are then fixed immediately by immersion in 95% ethanol for staining with the Papanicolaou method. If the Wright-Giemsa method is preferred by the cytology department, then the slides can be allowed to air-dry. It is impor tant to check with the lab. Cytopathologists trained in one modality of preparation (e.g., alcohol-fixed) may be uncomfortable with the other (e.g., air-dried), since each produces special artifacts. An alternative is to place the brush into a small vial of saline, followed by vigorous agitation. With this technique, cells are released into the saline and can be processed by a variety of means before or after fixation, including Millipore filtration and cytocentrifuge application directly onto slides.
