Invasiveness of bronchoscopic procedures based on relative bleeding rates
| Relative bleeding risk | Type of bronchoscopic procedure |
| High | Transbronchial biopsy and therapeutic bronchoscopy# |
| Intermediate | Endobronchial biopsy, therapeutic bronchoscopy#, stent placement, laser photoresection, argon-plasma coagulation, endobronchial electrosurgery and balloon bronchoplasty |
| Low | Explorative bronchoscopy: airway exam, suctioning, bronchoalveolar lavage, C-TBNA, EBUS-TBNA and endobronchial needle aspiration |
C-TBNA: conventional transbronchial needle aspiration; EBUS-TBNA: endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration. #: therapeutic bronchoscopy includes rigid bronchoscopy and can be categorised into both intermediate- as well as high-risk groups, depending on the nature of the procedure performed.