Bronchiectasis phenotypes in children and adults: protocol for a systematic review

Bronchiectasis is the final common pathway of several different disease processes manifesting as clinical phenotypes. A paucity of research into bronchiectasis phenotypes, however, has led to a one-size-fits-all approach to management which may lead to sub-optimal outcomes. In most cases, primary bronchiectasis is “idiopathic”, occurring in the absence of an identifiable underlying condition, or “post-infective” due to a previous infection (secondary bronchiectasis). Despite being the most common, there is limited understanding of idiopathic or post-infective bronchiectasis phenotypes. Disease phenotyping is important as it may provide clues to an individual’s disease course, prognosis and effectiveness of individual therapies.

The aim of this systematic review is to summarise current published studies on clinical phenotypes of idiopathic and/or post-infective bronchiectasis in adults and children.