From a viable cytologic brush biopsy of the respiratory epithelium you can get an insight into the functional state of the epithelial cell layer, especially of the ciliated cells. We report on our experience of several hundred sampling procedures from the nasal and bronchial mucosa. The technique of the method is described, including the microphotometric apparatus to determine the ciliary beat frequency. We stress the importance of checking the ciliary beat frequency of the 10 most active cells of one preparation to get representative results. Futhermore it is decisive to watch them over a period of 10 seconds, considering the time shift of the ciliary beat frequency. Putting the cell solution into a counting chamber gives the possibility of differentiating viable and dead ciliated cells as well as squamous cells in the sample. These results proved to yield a good picture of the functional state of the sampled respiratory mucosal site.
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