Airway Clearance Techniques

The airways of the patient with cystic fibrosis (CF) are chronically infected. There is excess mucus within the airways and, because of the chronic infection, the mucus also contains bacteria and inflammatory cells. Mucociliary clearance is impaired in patients with CF, and patients become dependent upon cough and other techniques to clear their airways of the thick sputum. This review discusses the various techniques and medications that have been demonstrated to be effective at assisting the clearance of the excess secretions in the CF airways. No single method has been proven to be better than the others, and not all patients will benefit, or use, the same techniques. Therefore, the methods of airway clearance must be tailored for each patient to assure effective therapy.