Question:medium
Which of the following structures is not seen on bronchoscopy?
Which of the following structures is not seen on bronchoscopy?
Show Hint
The scope sees only the lumen. Nodes outside the airway wall stay hidden.
Updated On: Jun 24, 2026
- Trachea
- Vocal cords
- Subcarinal lymph nodes
- First segmental division of bronchi
Show Solution
The Correct Option is C
Solution and Explanation
A bronchoscope is essentially a camera that travels inside the breathing tube. So the rule is simple: if a structure faces the airway lumen, the camera sees it; if it sits in the tissue outside the tube, the camera does not.
Going down the path, the cords guard the entrance to the larynx and are clearly visible. The trachea forms the corridor the scope travels through, so it is seen along its whole length. The carina splits the airway, and from there the scope reaches the lobar bronchi and the first segmental branches, all of which are luminal landmarks.
Subcarinal lymph nodes are a different matter. They lie buried in the mediastinum, behind the wall of the airway, just under the carina. The light of the scope never reaches them. The only clue on plain bronchoscopy is a splayed or widened carina if the nodes are enlarged. To actually see or sample them, an ultrasound probe or a mediastinal approach is required.
\[\boxed{\text{Subcarinal lymph nodes}}\]
Going down the path, the cords guard the entrance to the larynx and are clearly visible. The trachea forms the corridor the scope travels through, so it is seen along its whole length. The carina splits the airway, and from there the scope reaches the lobar bronchi and the first segmental branches, all of which are luminal landmarks.
Subcarinal lymph nodes are a different matter. They lie buried in the mediastinum, behind the wall of the airway, just under the carina. The light of the scope never reaches them. The only clue on plain bronchoscopy is a splayed or widened carina if the nodes are enlarged. To actually see or sample them, an ultrasound probe or a mediastinal approach is required.
\[\boxed{\text{Subcarinal lymph nodes}}\]
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