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Investigation of pleural effusion: the role of bronchoscopy |
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| Authors: | J. W. Upham C. A. Mitchell J. G. Armstrong W. T. Kelly |
| Affiliation: | Respiratory Physician, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Brisbane, QLD.;Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Queensland, Department of Medicine, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Brisbane, QLD.;Director of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Brisbane, QLD.;Respiratory Physician, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Brisbane, QLD. |
| Abstract: | To assess the place of bronchoscopy in the investigation of pleural effusion, 245 patients presenting during a two year period were reviewed. Of the 46 patients who had bronchoscopy, a positive yield was obtained in 13, though in five of these a second pleural aspiration was also diagnostic. Bronchoscopy was more likely to be diagnostic in patients presenting with a cough (12/24) than in those with no cough (1/22) ( p <0.001), and in those whose chest X-ray revealed significant radiological abnormalities such as hilar enlargement, lung mass or persisting consolidation (12/29), than in those without such changes (1/17) ( p <0.01). Bronchoscopy has a limited role in the investigation of pleural efision. The presence or absence of cough, and the appearance of the chest X-ray, are both important considerations when planning the investigation of an undiagnosed pleural effusion. (Aust NZ J Med 1992; 22: 41–43) |
| Keywords: | Pleural effusion bronchoscopy cough |