Lung Volume Reduction Program

Several conditions, including Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and emphysema make it more difficult to breathe. These conditions can lead to debilitating shortness of breath and a limited ability to walk, which negatively affect your quality of life.

Before 2018, treatment options included medication, such as inhalers, and surgical treatments. In 2018, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a new non-surgical treatment option: Bronchoscopic Lung Volume Reduction (BLVR).

This treatment option prevents air from entering the damaged portions of the lungs and reduces the pressure on the healthier portions of the lung, using a minimally invasive technique that does not require any incision (cut). The procedure benefits patients by dramatically improving the ability to breathe and perform physical activity, while also avoiding the risks associated with invasive surgery. Currently, a limited number of medical centers in the United States offer this innovative procedure.

At Weill Cornell Medicine, our team of providers are dedicated to your health and well-being so that you can live as fully as possible. We are proud to offer this minimally invasive lung volume reduction option to improve your quality of life.

Who Do We Care For?

Our team cares for those living with severe COPD or significant emphysema. These conditions can damage parts of the lungs, making it harder for the lungs to deflate (push air out). You may experience shortness of breath or difficulty walking or performing any physical activity.

At the Weill Cornell Medicine Lung Volume Reduction Program, your doctor will evaluate you closely, along with a multidisciplinary team that includes pulmonologists, radiologists, and nuclear medicine physicians, to determine if you would benefit from the BLVR procedure. Your doctor will request some tests, including:

●      Pulmonary function test (PFT) to measure your lung function

●      CT scan of your chest to assess and quantify the level of emphysema

●      Six-minute walk test (6MWT) to check your stamina; it shows how far you can walk during six minutes

●      Routine blood tests

Benefits of the BLVR procedure: This procedure helps improve lung function, making it easier to breathe. Patients benefit from a decrease in shortness of breath, increased capacity to walk, exercise and perform physical activity, as well as increased stamina.

Exceptional Lung Volume Reduction Program at Weill Cornell Medicine

In 2019, Dr. Ben-Gary Harvey launched the Lung Volume Reduction Program at Weill Cornell Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine. The program is one of the first medical centers in the New York City area to offer the BLVR procedure. Since then, the program at Weill Cornell Medicine has grown to help many patients achieve fuller, more comfortable daily lives.

Specialized nuclear imaging for lung volume reduction: The physicians at Weill Cornell Medicine implemented a specialized nuclear imaging study which more accurately assesses where blood is (and is not) properly flowing in your lungs, to then determine the potential parts of the lung to treat with BLVR.

Compassionate, personalized care, focused on your long-term benefits: Our skilled team provides the highest level of care. The Lung Volume Reduction Program focuses on helping each patient prepare for the procedure. We use the highest safety standards, which improves peri-procedural (pre and post procedure) care and outcomes. This helps us to achieve the best possible quality of life for our patients.

What to Expect During the BLVR Procedure

This procedure is not done in an operating room. It is done in the bronchoscopy suite under general anesthesia. The bronchoscopy suite is located on the second floor of the Greenberg Pavilion in the main hospital at 525 East 68th street.

During the BLVR procedure, an experienced anesthesia team will provide the general anesthesia. The pulmonary doctor will perform the bronchoscopy, to place several one-way valves into the portions of the lungs more affected by emphysema that are not effectively deflating. The valves allow air to leave those affected areas of the lungs, but not come back, causing these parts of the lungs to shrink, and allowing the adjacent, healthier portions of the lungs to use the newly created space to function better.

After the hour-long procedure, you will be closely monitored at the hospital for approximately five days. Upon discharge, you will be expected to perform routine chest x-rays the first several weeks following your procedure, to evaluate the effect of the valves. You will have a follow-up appointment with your pulmonologist, in addition to a follow-up appointment with the BLVR team.

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