BACKGROUND Pleural effusions occur for various reasons,and their diagnosis remains challenging despite the availability of different diagnostic modalities.Medical thoracoscopy(MT)can be used for both diagnostic and th...BACKGROUND Pleural effusions occur for various reasons,and their diagnosis remains challenging despite the availability of different diagnostic modalities.Medical thoracoscopy(MT)can be used for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes,especially in patients with undiagnosed pleural effusion.AIM To assess the diagnostic efficacy and safety of MT in patients with pleural effusion of different causes.METHODS Between January 1,2012 and April 30,2021,patients with pleural effusion underwent MT in the Department of Respiratory Medicine,The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University(Shaanxi,China).According to the discharge diagnosis,patients were divided into malignant pleural effusion(MPE),tuberculous pleural effusion(TBPE),and inflammatory pleural effusion(IPE)groups.General information,and tuberculosis-and effusion-related indices of the three groups were analyzed.The diagnostic yield,diagnostic accuracy,performance under thoracoscopy,and complications of patients were compared among the three groups.Then,the significant predictive factors for diagnosis between the MPE and TBPE groups were analyzed.RESULTS Of the 106 patients enrolled in this 10-year study,67 were male and 39 female,with mean age of 57.1±14.184 years.Among the 74 thoracoscopy-confirmed patients,41(38.7%)had MPE,21 had(19.8%)TBPE,and 32(30.2%)were undiagnosed.Overall diagnostic yield of MT was 69.8%(MPE:75.9%,TBPE:48.8%,and IPE:75.0%,with diagnostic accuracies of 100%,87.5%,and 75.0%,respectively).Under thoracoscopy,single or multiple pleural nodules were observed in 81.1%and pleural adhesions in 34.0%with pleural effusions.The most common complication was chest pain(41.5%),followed by chest tightness(11.3%)and fever(10.4%).Multivariate logistic regression analyses showed effusion appearance[odds ratio(OR):0.001,95%CI:0.000-0.204;P=0.010]and carcinoembryonic antigen(OR:0.243,95%CI:0.081-0.728;P=0.011)as significant for differentiating MPE and TBPE,with area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.977(95%CI:0.953-1.000;P<0.001).CONCLUSION MT is an effective,safe,and minimally invasive procedure with high diagnostic yield for pleural effusion of different causes.展开更多
Background Thoracoscopy is highly sensitive and accurate for detecting pleural effusions. However, most respiratory physicians are not familiar with the use of the more common rigid thoracoscope or the flexible bronch...Background Thoracoscopy is highly sensitive and accurate for detecting pleural effusions. However, most respiratory physicians are not familiar with the use of the more common rigid thoracoscope or the flexible bronchoscope, which is difficult to manipulate within the pleural cavity. The semi-rigid thoracoscope combines the best features of the flexible and rigid instruments. Since the practice with this instrument is limited in China, the diagnostic utility of semi-rigid thoracoscopy （namely medical thoracoscopy） under local anesthesia for undiagnosed exudative pleural effusions was evaluated . Methods In 50 patients with undiagnosed pleural effusions who were studied retrospectively, 23 received routine examinations between July 2004 and June 2005 and the rest 27 patients underwent medical thoracoscopy during July 2005 and June 2006. Routine examinations of the pleural effusions involved biochemistry and cytology, sputum cytology, and thoracentesis. The difference in diagnostic sensitivity, costs related to pleural fluid examination and complications were compared directly between the two groups. Results Medical thoracoscopy revealed tuberculous pleurisy in 6 patients, adenocarcinoma in 7, squamous-cell carcinoma in 2, metastatic carcinoma in 3, mesothelioma in 2, non-Hodgkin＇s lymphoma in 1, and others in 4. Only 2 patients could not get definite diagnoses. Diagnostic efficiency of medical thoracoscopy was 93% （25/27）. Only 21% patients were diagnosed after routine examinations, including parapneumonic effusion in 2 patients, lung cancer in 2 and undetermined metastatic malignancy in 1. Twelve patients with tuberculous pleurisy were suspected by routine examination. Costs related to pleural effusion testing showed no difference between the two groups （P=0.114）. Twenty-three patients in the routine examination group underwent 97 times of thoracentesis. Two pleural infection patients and 2 pneumothorax patients were identified and received antibiotic treatment and drainage. Medical thoracoscopy could be well tolerated by all the patients. The semi-rigid thoracoscope could be easily controlled by chest physicians. The most common complication was transient chest pain （20 of 27 patients） from the indwelling chest tube, which would be managed with conventional analgesics. One case of subcutaneous emphysema and 2 cases of postoperative fever were self-limiting. No severe complications occurred. Conclusions Medical thoracoscopy is a simple, safe, and cost-effective tool, with a high positive rate. Physicians should extend its access to proper patients if the facilities for medical thoracoscopy are available.展开更多
基金Supported by Shaanxi Science and Technology Research Plan Program,Shaanxi,China,No. 2020SF-106
文摘BACKGROUND Pleural effusions occur for various reasons,and their diagnosis remains challenging despite the availability of different diagnostic modalities.Medical thoracoscopy(MT)can be used for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes,especially in patients with undiagnosed pleural effusion.AIM To assess the diagnostic efficacy and safety of MT in patients with pleural effusion of different causes.METHODS Between January 1,2012 and April 30,2021,patients with pleural effusion underwent MT in the Department of Respiratory Medicine,The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University(Shaanxi,China).According to the discharge diagnosis,patients were divided into malignant pleural effusion(MPE),tuberculous pleural effusion(TBPE),and inflammatory pleural effusion(IPE)groups.General information,and tuberculosis-and effusion-related indices of the three groups were analyzed.The diagnostic yield,diagnostic accuracy,performance under thoracoscopy,and complications of patients were compared among the three groups.Then,the significant predictive factors for diagnosis between the MPE and TBPE groups were analyzed.RESULTS Of the 106 patients enrolled in this 10-year study,67 were male and 39 female,with mean age of 57.1±14.184 years.Among the 74 thoracoscopy-confirmed patients,41(38.7%)had MPE,21 had(19.8%)TBPE,and 32(30.2%)were undiagnosed.Overall diagnostic yield of MT was 69.8%(MPE:75.9%,TBPE:48.8%,and IPE:75.0%,with diagnostic accuracies of 100%,87.5%,and 75.0%,respectively).Under thoracoscopy,single or multiple pleural nodules were observed in 81.1%and pleural adhesions in 34.0%with pleural effusions.The most common complication was chest pain(41.5%),followed by chest tightness(11.3%)and fever(10.4%).Multivariate logistic regression analyses showed effusion appearance[odds ratio(OR):0.001,95%CI:0.000-0.204;P=0.010]and carcinoembryonic antigen(OR:0.243,95%CI:0.081-0.728;P=0.011)as significant for differentiating MPE and TBPE,with area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.977(95%CI:0.953-1.000;P<0.001).CONCLUSION MT is an effective,safe,and minimally invasive procedure with high diagnostic yield for pleural effusion of different causes.
文摘Background Thoracoscopy is highly sensitive and accurate for detecting pleural effusions. However, most respiratory physicians are not familiar with the use of the more common rigid thoracoscope or the flexible bronchoscope, which is difficult to manipulate within the pleural cavity. The semi-rigid thoracoscope combines the best features of the flexible and rigid instruments. Since the practice with this instrument is limited in China, the diagnostic utility of semi-rigid thoracoscopy （namely medical thoracoscopy） under local anesthesia for undiagnosed exudative pleural effusions was evaluated . Methods In 50 patients with undiagnosed pleural effusions who were studied retrospectively, 23 received routine examinations between July 2004 and June 2005 and the rest 27 patients underwent medical thoracoscopy during July 2005 and June 2006. Routine examinations of the pleural effusions involved biochemistry and cytology, sputum cytology, and thoracentesis. The difference in diagnostic sensitivity, costs related to pleural fluid examination and complications were compared directly between the two groups. Results Medical thoracoscopy revealed tuberculous pleurisy in 6 patients, adenocarcinoma in 7, squamous-cell carcinoma in 2, metastatic carcinoma in 3, mesothelioma in 2, non-Hodgkin＇s lymphoma in 1, and others in 4. Only 2 patients could not get definite diagnoses. Diagnostic efficiency of medical thoracoscopy was 93% （25/27）. Only 21% patients were diagnosed after routine examinations, including parapneumonic effusion in 2 patients, lung cancer in 2 and undetermined metastatic malignancy in 1. Twelve patients with tuberculous pleurisy were suspected by routine examination. Costs related to pleural effusion testing showed no difference between the two groups （P=0.114）. Twenty-three patients in the routine examination group underwent 97 times of thoracentesis. Two pleural infection patients and 2 pneumothorax patients were identified and received antibiotic treatment and drainage. Medical thoracoscopy could be well tolerated by all the patients. The semi-rigid thoracoscope could be easily controlled by chest physicians. The most common complication was transient chest pain （20 of 27 patients） from the indwelling chest tube, which would be managed with conventional analgesics. One case of subcutaneous emphysema and 2 cases of postoperative fever were self-limiting. No severe complications occurred. Conclusions Medical thoracoscopy is a simple, safe, and cost-effective tool, with a high positive rate. Physicians should extend its access to proper patients if the facilities for medical thoracoscopy are available.
