Diagnostic Strategy for Hematology and Oncology Patients with Acute Respiratory Failure Randomized Controlled Trial

number of patients with no identified cause of ARF. Measurements and Main Results: The need for mechanical ventilation was not significantly greater in the FO-BAL group than in the noninvasive group (35.4 vs. 38.7%; P 5 0.62). The proportion of patients with no diagnosis was not smaller in the noninvasive group (21.7 vs. 20.4%; difference, 21.3% [210.4 to 7.7]). Conclusions: FO-BAL performed in the intensive care unit did not significantly increase intubation requirements in critically ill cancer patients with ARF. Noninvasive testing alone was not inferior to noninvasive testing plus FO-BAL for identifying the cause of ARF. Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT00248443).