Asthma and COPD Clinic

Bronchial Thermoplasty (BT) is an FDA approved procedure for adult patients with severe asthma who remain poorly controlled despite compliance with medical therapy. BT employs heat, delivered by thin wires fed down the airway, to reduce the amount of excess smooth muscle in the airway. The procedure uses the Alair System, developed by Asthmatx Inc., which comprises a specially designed catheter and electrode array to deliver a precise amount of heat energy to the excess smooth muscle. The treatment is performed in three outpatient procedures, typically three weeks apart. This presentation features Mark T. Dransfield, MD, and Jennifer Trevor, MD, performing and providing step-by-step narration of a Bronchial Thermoplasty Procedure.

For more information on UAB's Bronchial Thermoplasty procedure, including consult and referral resources, click here.

Dr. Surya P. Bhatt, assistant professor and medical director of UAB Medicine's Remote Rehabilitation Program discusses a multidisciplinary management study that targets hospital readmissions of COPD, and how early pulmonary rehab and telehealth interventions can affect these trends and ultimately transfer revenue to the health system.

Michael Wells, MD, assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine, provides updates on treatments for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and moderate hypoxemia, including the use of supplemental oxygen and long term oxygen therapy (LTOT).