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Respiratory Medicine

The Department of Respiratory Medicine provides medical services for patients with lung and pleural tumors; respiratory tract infections; allergic and inflammatory lung diseases; pulmonary vascular lesions; sleep-disordered breathing; and respiratory failure.

Medical services

Outpatient care for respiratory disease is provided by three specialists mornings and afternoons every day. Hospitalized patients receive consultation and treatment from a medical team consisting of a specialist experienced in the field of respiratory disease, residents, and medical staff. We also provide consultation to patients with respiratory problems admitted to other departments.

Diagnosis and treatment policy

A team of specialists consisting not only of respiratory physicians but also of specialists from the Department of Thoracic Surgery, the Divisions of Diagnostic Radiology and Radiotherapy, and the Division of Pathology works together to select the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment strategies according to the latest guidelines for each disease. Patients are provided with full explanations of the diagnosis and treatment plans before treatment is started.

Specialties

The Department of Respiratory Medicine provides care for an extensive range of reapiratory diseases.
(primary lung cancer, respiratory tract infection(pneumonia, lung abscess,empyema), chronic obstructive lung disease, bronchial asthma,spontaneous pheumothorax, interstitial pneumonia(including hypersensitivity pneumonitis), malignant disease other than primary lung cancer, pleuritis, bronchiectasis/diffuse panbronchiolitis, sarcoidosis, pulmonary mycosis, pulmonary nontuberculous mycobacterial infection, and so on.)

Target diseases

Primary lung cancer, mediastinal/pleural neoplasm, respiratory tract infection (pneumonia, pulmonary mycobacteriosis, pulmonary mycosis), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, interstitial pneumonia, bronchial asthma/allergic lung diseases, spontaneous pneumothorax, sarcoidosis, bronchiectasis, acute/ chronic respiratory failure, etc.

Frequently performed tests and descriptions

Outpatients
  • Pulmonary function test
  • Bronchoscopy
Inpatients
  • Bronchoscopy (transbronchial lung biopsy, bronchoalveolar lavage, endobronchial ultrasonography using a guide sheath, endobronchial ultrasound guided transbronchial needle aspiration)

Major diseases and numbers of inpatients treated

Disease name Number of inpatients
1 Primary pulmonary cancer 324
2 Malignant diseases other than primary pulmonary cancer 33
3 Respiratory infection (pneumonia, pulmonary abscess, empyema) 50
4 Interstitial pneumonia (including hypersensitivity pneumonitis) 62
5 Bronchial asthma 9
6 Sarcoidosis 5
7 Spontaneous pneumothorax 3
8 Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease 17
9 Non-tuberculous mycobacteria 15

(2015)

Areas of expertise, treatment and examination methods

Diseases
  1. Primary pulmonary cancer
  2. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
  3. Interstitial pneumonia
  4. Bronchial asthma
Treatment methods
  1. Anticancer chemotherapy for primary pulmonary cancer
  2. Home oxygen therapy for chronic respiratory failure
  3. Immunosuppressive therapy for interstitial pneumonia
  4. Education for patients with bronchial asthma
Examination methods
  1. Bronchoscopy (such as tumor biopsy, transbronchial lung biopsy, bronchoalveolar lavage, and scraping, washing, and aspiration cytodiagnosis)

Numbers of major and specialized examinations conducted in this department

Name of examination Number
1 Bronchoscopy 151

(2015)

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