Pulmonary Medicine

Pulmonologists on staff perform diagnostic bronchoscopies in infants and children with suspected airway or lung disorders.

The Cystic Fibrosis Center at the Children's Hospital of Michigan is the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation accredited care center for patients in the Detroit Tri-County Area. It offers a sweat testing laboratory dedicated to performing confirmatory sweat testing for newborns that have had a positive screen for cystic fibrosis.

Physicians from throughout metropolitan Detroit in Michigan refer their patients with difficult-to-treat asthma to the Pulmonary Medicine specialists on staff at Children's Hospital of Michigan. This may include children with asthma complicated by co-morbid conditions such as vocal cord dysfunction. With special expertise in asthma management, specialists on staff can help recognize and effectively treat asthma in children and help reduce emergency room visit and hospitalizations.

The Center is the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's accredited care center for patients in the metropolitan Detroit Tri-County Area of Michigan. The Center offers care and treatment for infants, children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis. It utilizes a multidisciplinary team approach including doctors, physician assistant, nurse practitioner, nurses, social worker, dietitian, and respiratory therapists to address all areas of cystic fibrosis.  The goal is to provide the best care for patients and families through education, support and providing the most up to date medical care possible.

The division also offers a Sleep Center with sleep lab services located in Canton, Clinton Township, Detroit, and Dearborn. The sleep labs have all the comforts of home and are decorated like a cozy bedroom. Young patients are encouraged to bring stuffed animals and “blankies” from home to make their overnight stay even more comfortable. A parent or caregiver is required to bunk in the room with their child to ease any apprehensions. A sleep study is a non-invasive procedure that analyzes the body’s sleep patterns. Throughout the night, qualified technicians monitor body functions such as brain wave activity, muscle tone, heart rate, eye movement, air flow, respiratory effort and oxygen levels. Sleep specialist reads the results of each sleep study, generates a report, then sends it to the referring physician with necessary recommendations. Children who experience excessive daytime sleepiness may require a daytime study after the nighttime evaluation.

The pediatric Pulmonary Medicine specialists on staff work closely with the Muscular Dystrophy Clinic to provide expert pulmonary care to children with neuromuscular disorders.

At Children's Hospital of Michigan, a multidisciplinary team of pediatric specialists including ENT, Gastroenterology, Pulmonology, Speech Pathology, Nutrition, and Respiratory Therapy collaborate for a monthly clinic to discuss children with complicated breathing and feeding concerns. All patients are seen by all practitioners at the same appointment for a comprehensive evaluation. The patient's care is then coordinated to provide the patient and pediatrician with a comprehensive plan that addresses their specific aerodigestive concerns. The multidisciplinary clinic allows us to minimize anesthetics and radiation exposure and centralizes care through the Nurse Practitioner Coordinator. Common complaints seen include dysphagia, feeding tube weaning, stridor, chronic cough, refractory reflux, oral aversion, trach/vent/oxygen concerns, difficulties after NICU discharge, eosinophiic airway disorders and others.