OBJECTIVE Pleural tuberculosis is the most frequently occurring form of extra pulmonary disease in adults. In up to 40% of cases, the lung parenchyma is concomitantly involved, which can have an epidemiological impact. This study aims to evaluate the pleural and systemic inflammatory response of patients with pleural or pleuropulmonary tuberculosis. METHODS A prospective study of 39 patients ...

BACKGROUND The release of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) by T lymphocytes increases after rechallenge with Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigen, especially, at a localized site of tuberculosis (TB) infection. We aimed to compare the clincial efficacy of two commercial IFN-γ release assays from pleural fluid for the diagnosis in tuberculous pleurisy. METHODS We performed T-SPOT.TB and QuantiFERON-TB G...

The series comprised 37 patients admitted to hospital for the diagnostic evaluation of one-sided or bilateral pleurisy. Patients with malignancies of extrapulmonary tissues were not included. The diagnosis of pleurisy was based on clinical, laboratory, and radiological findings. The patients were divided into three groups according to the final diagnosis: (a) those with tuberculous pleurisy, (b...

BACKGROUND A study was undertaken to evaluate the diagnostic value of pleural fluid concentrations of interferon gamma (IFN-gamma) as a marker of tuberculosis. METHODS Patients admitted to King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital between April 1997 and January 1998 with a lymphocytic exudative pleural effusion were enrolled into the study. The pleural fluids were examined for cytology, staining f...

Pleural fluid analysis yields important diagnostic information in pleural effusions in combination with clinical history, examination, and radiology. For more than 30 years, the initial and most pragmatic step in this process is to determine whether the fluid is a transudate or an exudate. Light's criteria remain the most robust in separating the transudate-exudate classification which dictates...

blood. Similar results in the pleural fluid have been reported by Groman et al;i however, in this report BAL cell analysis was not available. In our patients, the lymphocyte profile found in pkural effusion was closer to that seen in BAL. Lymphocyte subpopulation findings in the pleural fluid seem to be representative ofthe pleural histologic involvement, as BAL is of alveolitis. By contrast, i...

Objectives: To evaluate the usefulness of diverse combinations of pleural cholesterol concentration, pleural or serum protein, and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels for the differentiation ofpleural exudates and transudates. Design: Prospective laboratory study of pleural effu¬ sions. Setting: Medical school hospital. Patients: One hundred eighty consecutive internal medicine ward patients in ...

Neoplastic diseases account for approximately 13% of the annual incidence of pleural effusions, and 75% of these effusions are secondary to malignancies of the lungs and breast or lymphoma. The most common pathogenic mechanisms that produce malignant pleural effusions (MPE) are (1) pleural metastasis resulting in increased membrane permeability beyond the capacity of lymphatic drainage, (2) met...

abstract background: pleural effusion is the accumulation of excess fluid in the pleural cavity. most information available about pleural effusion is obtained from studies on adults and little evidence is available in children. therefore, it is necessary to identify the existing status and explain the disease process, signs, treatment, and prognosis. children with pleural effusion who were admi...

BACKGROUND Early pleural tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis is particularly difficult. The aim of this study was to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of the Xpert MTB/RIF (Xpert) (Cepheid, Sunnyvale, CA) assay using pleural biopsy and pleural fluid specimens in patients with suspected pleural TB but who had a negative sputum acid-fast bacilli (AFB) smear. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this study, 134 s...