Diagnostic Value of Ultrasound-Guided Pleural Biopsy in Patients with Recurrent Pleural Effusion | ||||
The Egyptian Journal of Hospital Medicine | ||||
Article 46, Volume 85, Issue 1, October 2021, Page 2941-2944 PDF (342.58 K) | ||||
Document Type: Original Article | ||||
DOI: 10.21608/ejhm.2021.191655 | ||||
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Authors | ||||
Mohamed Azzam; Tarek Mohsen; Sally Fouad Tadros; Hesham Zayed Saleh | ||||
Cardiothoracic Surgery Department, Kasr Al Ainy Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Egypt. | ||||
Abstract | ||||
Background: Establishing a definite diagnosis in cases of pleural effusion is sometimes challenging. Adding ultrasound-guided tru-cut biopsy at the time of obtaining pleural fluid for analysis may increase the diagnostic yield in such cases. Objective: The aim of the current work was to assess the diagnostic yield and the safety of percutaneous ultrasound guided tru-cut needle biopsy in patients with recurrent undiagnosed pleural effusion. Patients and Methods: A retrospective observational study including 45 patients with recurrent undiagnosed pleural effusion who underwent ultrasound-guided tru-cut needle biopsy in the period between January 2019 and October 2020. Results: By using ultrasound-guided needle biopsy, we were able to reach a final histopathological diagnosis in 40 patients with a diagnostic yield of 88.8%. Only 5 cases remained undiagnosed (11.1%). Mesothelioma was found in 13 cases (28.9%) and bronchogenic carcinoma in 7 cases (15.5%). Post-procedural complications included 1 case of pneumothorax (2.2%) and 1 case of hemothorax (2.2%) all resolving with the small caliber chest drain that was inserted at the conclusion of the procedure. Conclusion: It could be concluded that ultrasound-guided needle biopsy is a safe procedure that can be useful in establishing a diagnosis in patients with recurrent pleural effusion. Its high diagnostic yield, while being simpler and cheaper than CT guided biopsy or thoracoscopy, makes it a suitable option in our clinical settings. More studies are needed to validate our findings. | ||||
Keywords | ||||
Pleural effusion; Tru-cut needle biopsy; Ultrasound | ||||
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