US Patent 7819908 Compositions and methods for reducing lung volume

The invention includes a method for performing non-surgical lung volume reduction in a patient by applying an amount of energy with a catheter to a diseased alveolar region of the lung of a patient having emphysema, wherein the amount of energy is sufficient to damage the epithelial cells and the epithelial barrier within the diseased alveolar region of the lung and collapse at least a portion of said region thereby reducing the lung volume, and wherein the energy comprises thermal energy, electrical energy, and ultrasonic energy.