Flexible bronchoscopy greatly improves the diagnosis and management of many respiratory disorders. Generally considered safe, in some patients, it may lead to worsening of respiratory failure and cause subsequent complications such as cardiac arrhythmias. Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) is a useful tool to increase the sensitivity of the bronchoscopic examination in the differential diagnosis of lung diseases, especially interstitial diseases. It is also valuable in clinical research of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease pathophysiology and treatment. However, for BAL results to be diagnostic, they must meet a certain quality. Still, little is known about predictors of poor BAL salvage. Noninvasive ventilation (NIV) allows for an increase in the safety of bronchoscopy and its accompanying procedures. Based on observations and literature, there is a possibility that NIV may increase BAL salvage in patients with pulmonary diseases without increasing the risk of respiratory failure exacerbation. There is a need for future randomized controlled trials that address these issues.