Bronchoscopic lung volume reduction
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Bronchoscopic lung volume reduction (BLVR) is a procedure to reduce the volume of air within the lungs. BLVR was initially developed in the early 2000s[1][2] as a minimally invasive treatment for severe COPD that is primarily caused by emphysema. BLVR evolved from earlier surgical approaches first developed in the 1950s[3] to reduce lung volume by removing damaged portions of the lungs via pneumonectomy or wedge resection. Procedures include the use of valves, coils, or thermal vapour ablation.[citation needed]