Introduction: Bronchiectasis is usually a complication of previous lower respiratory infection, and causes chronic cough and copious production of sputum, which is often purulent. Bronchiectasis may cause signs of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. It can also be associated with cystic fibrosis and other congenital disorders, foreign body inhalation, and other causes of lung damage.

Methods and outcomes: We conducted a systematic review and aimed to answer the following clinical question: What are the effects of treatments in people with bronchiectasis but without cystic fibrosis? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library and other important databases up to July 2007 (Clinical Evidence reviews are updated periodically, please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this review). We included harms alerts from relevant organisations such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). We performed a GRADE evaluation of the quality of evidence for interventions.

Results: We found 16 systematic reviews, RCTs, or observational studies that met our inclusion criteria.

Conclusions: In this systematic review we present information relating to the effectiveness and safety of the following interventions: anticholinergic therapy, bronchopulmonary hygiene physical therapy, exercise or physical training, hyperosmolar agents (inhaled), leukotriene receptor antagonists, methyl-xanthines (oral), mucolytics (bromhexine or deoxyribonuclease), prolonged-use antibiotics, beta(2) agonists, steroids (inhaled, oral), and surgery.