Conflicts of Interest in Bronchoscopy Research: Is Self-Reporting Sufficient?

Background: Robotic assisted bronchoscopy has been enthusiastically adopted in the United States and has transformed the treatment of patients with indeterminate pulmonary nodules. Unprecedented industry investments in research, development, and marketing have profoundly affected the bronchoscopy landscape, leading to concerns that conflicts of interest could influence the validity of bronchoscopy studies. Disclosures of conflicts of interest in research are predicated on open and transparent self-reporting.

Diagnostic Yield vs Diagnostic Accuracy for Peripheral Lung Biopsy Evaluation: Evidence Supporting a Future Pragmatic End Point.

Background: Diagnostic yield and accuracy endpoints have been used inconsistently in the evaluation of advanced diagnostic bronchoscopy devices and techniques, limiting between-study comparisons. In addition, diagnostic accuracy can be adjudicated only after prolonged clinical follow-up, which delays reporting on the performance of novel devices.

Research Question: Will a conservative diagnostic yield definition result in few false-negative initial results to closely approximate diagnostic accuracy and represent a useful outcome for future studies of diagnostic utility?

Methods: Commonly used definitions of diagnostic yield were applied to a prospective data set of consecutive peripheral pulmonary lesions sampled by navigational bronchoscopy from 2017 to 2019.