The aim is to study the significance of adenosine deaminase levels in the diagnosis and differentiation of tuberculous pleural effusion from other non tuberculous pleural effusions. METHOD: A total of eighty (80) patients of pleural effusion were included in the study, out of which 50 were cases of tuberculous pleural effusion and 30 controls of non tuberculous pleural effusion. RESULTS: Adenos...

We investigated the role of F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) for the differential diagnosis of malignant and benign pleural effusion. We studied 36 consecutive patients with histologically proven cancer (excluding malignant mesothelioma) who underwent FDG-PET/CT for suspected malignant pleural effusion. Fourteen patients had cytologically...

introduction antiphospholipid syndrome (aps) associated with intra-cardiac thrombus and pulmonary embolism is infrequent. however, the presence of pleural effusion is extremely rare. case presentation a 42-year-old woman, admitted with palpitation, dyspnea and history of stroke and thrombocytopenia is described. doppler sonography revealed deep vein thrombosis. moreover, subsequent investigatio...

BACKGROUND Hydrothorax, as one of the common complications of malignant tumors, still cannot be sensitively detected in clinical practice, thus requiring a sensitive, specific method for diagnosis. The aim of this study was to analyze the correlation between levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in patients with benign and malignant hydr...

BACKGROUND Apoptosis plays a role in the development of pleural effusion. Caspase-cleaved cytokeratin 18, a marker for epithelial cell apoptosis, was evaluated in pleural effusion. METHODS A total of 79 patients with pleural effusion were enrolled. The underlying causes were lung cancer (n=24), parapneumonic effusion (n=15), tuberculous effusion (n=28), and transudates (n=12). The levels of M...

While pleural effusion and ascites secondary to acute pancreatitis are common, clinically relevant pericardial effusion and cardiac tamponade are observed rarely. In a study by Pezzilli et al., pleural effusion was noted in 7 of the 21 patients with acute pancreatitis whereas the authors detected pericardial effusion development in only three. The authors asserted that pleural effusion was asso...

Pleural involvement in sarcoidosis with the development of pleural effusion is a not so common occurrence. The incidence reported in the literature is approximately 1–10%. Pleural effusion related to sarcoidosis is diagnosed when other more common etiologies are excluded. It is slightly more common on the right side, and is usually an exudate with lymphocytic predominance. I report a case of pl...

INTRODUCTION Pleural effusions are a common clinical problem and affect about one million people in the United States and United Kingdom each year. Over 60 causes of pleural effusion have been identified; establishing the definitive aetiology can be difficult, and often requires invasive procedures. Guidelines state that macroscopic examination of the fluid should be the first step in determini...

Pleural effusion is not uncommon in developing countries. It is usually considered to be due to tuberculosis and treated with anti-tubercular chemotherapy without much diagnostic workup. Hepatic vena cava disease (HVD), a disease caused by obliterative lesion of the hepatic portion of inferior vena cava induced by bacterial infection is common in developing countries. We report here the occurre...

BACKGROUND Pleural effusion is frequent in intensive care unit patients, but its impact on the outcome of weaning remains unknown. METHODS In a prospective study performed in three intensive care units, pleural ultrasound was performed at the first spontaneous breathing trial to detect and quantify pleural effusion (small, moderate, and large). Weaning failure was defined by a failed spontane...