Advanced lung care in Jacksonville
Your lungs are an important part of your overall health. A chronic cough or shortness of breath can impact your daily life and keep you from the activities you enjoy. Pulmonary medicine and respiratory care teams at Ascension St. Vincent's in Northeast Florida, provide diagnostic tests and treatments for conditions that affect your lungs and airways. Our care teams listen to understand you and your health concerns. Then, we work with you to create a care plan that's right for you.
Pulmonary medicine and respiratory care conditions
Lung, sleep and critical medicine specialists at Ascension St. Vincent's provide personalized care for lung and airways conditions affecting adults, including:
- Asthma
- Bronchitis
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- Cystic fibrosis
- Emphysema
- Interstitial lung disease
- Lung cancer
- Lung infection
- Pneumonia
- Other conditions affecting the lungs and airway
Advanced lung care with minimally invasive tests and treatments
Symptoms of a lung condition include chronic cough or coughing up blood, noisy breathing, shortness of breath, tightness in your chest, tiredness or chest pain that lasts longer than a month. If you are experiencing symptoms of a respiratory condition, talk with a pulmonologist.
The pulmonology care team at Ascension St. Vincent's includes interventional pulmonologists, who specialize in non-surgical, minimally invasive procedures for the diagnosis and treatment of lung and airway diseases.
Pulmonary medicine care teams at Ascension St. Vincent's provide advanced diagnostic tests including:
Ultrasound guided biopsy of lung or lymph node - During a biopsy, your doctor uses a small needle to collect tissue from your lung or a lymph node. The tissue is then examined to diagnose cancer, infection, lung fibrosis, inflammation in the lung and other lung diseases.
Flexible bronchoscopy - During bronchoscopy, your doctor inserts a flexible tube with a camera through your mouth or nose into your lung. Images from inside the lung are displayed on a screen while your pulmonologist examines your lungs.
Robotic-assisted bronchoscopy - Using Ion™ robotic-assisted bronchoscope, your doctor can collect a tissue sample as small as 1 centimeter from your lung, a nodule or a lymph node. This new technology helps your doctor access hard-to-reach nodules in the lung and improve the early detection of lung cancer .
Low-dose CT lung scan - This radiology test is a screening for lung cancer and lung nodules. You lay on a flat table that slides into a computed tomography (CT) scanner. Multiple images are taken of your chest. These images create a detailed picture of your lungs and can help your doctor diagnose lung cancer.
Ascension St. Vincent's Lung Institute Lung Nodule Clinic
Ascension St. Vincent's Lung Institute Lung Nodule Clinic provides screenings, evaluation, diagnosis and treatment for lung nodules, a small mass in the lung. Having a low-dose CT lung scan can help find lung nodules and lung cancer early, when it is most treatable. If lung nodules are found, we monitor your condition and test the nodule for cancer. Finding cancer early means there may be more options for treatment too.
If you are diagnosed with lung cancer, we can connect you to a cancer specialist. Our cancer care team of medical oncologists, radiation oncologists and surgeons work together to deliver care that's right for you.
Benefits of choosing the care team at Ascension St. Vincent's Lung Institute Lung Nodule Clinic:
- Fast access to a consultation with a pulmonary medicine doctor specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of lung nodules.
- Minimally invasive procedures to evaluate nodules, diagnose cancer and to help manage your symptoms.
- ALS
- Myasthenia gravis
- Muscular dystrophies
- Diaphragm dysfunction or paralysis
- Spinal cord injury
- Thoracic cage abnormalities
- Other respiratory conditions
- Noninvasive positive pressure ventilation
- Mechanical insufflation exsufflation (cough assist) device treatment
- Home mechanical ventilation
- Patient and caregiver education including smoking cessation counseling
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Scleroderma
- Dermatomyositis and polymyositis
- Mixed connective tissue disease
- Sjogren's syndrome
- Sarcoidosis
- Pulmonary Fibrosis
- Mycobacterium infection
- New therapy with shortness of breath.
- Recent exposure to pollutants, post chemotherapy or radiation therapy
Neuromuscular respiratory clinic
Our care team at Ascension St. Vincent's Neuromuscular Respiratory Clinic works to identify and treat respiratory conditions that are caused by neuromuscular diseases. Common conditions that may affect the respiratory system include:
We offer specialized pulmonary function testing to better understand your respiratory muscles' strength. Your doctor may also recommend arterial blood gas testing to help diagnose your condition. In addition, sleep studies may be done to help your doctor understand how your breathing changes as you sleep.
Depending on your condition, your care plan may include:
Interventional Pulmonology Program
Airway blockage and stenting
Sometimes, advanced cancer or other conditions can block part of your airway to your lungs. Symptoms can include difficulty breathing, cough and pneumonia. Airway stenting can help open your airway and restore air flow. By using a bronchoscope, your doctor can insert a stent into the narrowed airway. Once the stent is expanded, airflow may be restored and symptoms may be relieved.
Endobronchial valves
These one- way valves are inserted into the airway to help improve symptoms of COPD. The valves are designed to allow air to flow out of this section of the lung, but not to flow in. By restricting airflow to these areas, it can give healthier areas of the lung more room to expand and reduce stress on the diaphragm.
Pulmonary hypertension and interstitial lung disease program
Choose a care team that’s experienced in caring for pulmonary hypertension and lung disease. Our specialized clinics allow you to get care from doctors who specialize in your condition. By knowing you and your condition well, we create a care plan that’s right for you. When you choose us for your care, you also have access to clinical trials and innovative therapies.
Interstitial lung disease may be caused by long-term exposure to hazardous materials, such as asbestos or coal dust. Or, it can be caused by an autoimmune disease, such as rheumatoid arthritis. Once lung scarring occurs, it's generally irreversible. Any patient diagnosed with the following may qualify to be seen in our clinic:
Clinical trial for lung disease and COPD
Ascension St. Vincent's is the first health system in Florida to participate in a clinical trial, AIRFLOW-3, for patients who have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) flare-ups, also known as lung attacks. If you have COPD and a history of lung attacks, you may be a candidate to participate in this clinical trial. To learn more or schedule a consultation, call 904-308-5761.
For information on additional clinical trials click here or call 904-308-5761.
