胸腔镜与经皮胸膜活检在胸腔积液诊断中的临床价值

目的比较内科胸腔镜和经皮胸膜活检在胸腔积液诊断中的价值。方法分析我院同期开展内科胸腔镜(胸腔镜组)和经皮胸膜活检(闭式活检组)的胸腔积液患者,比较两组的病理诊断阳性率及安全性。结果胸腔镜组病理诊断阳性率显著高于闭式活检组,胸腔镜组恶性肿瘤诊断率显著高于闭式活检组,胸腔镜组胸膜结核的诊断率与闭式活检组无显著性差异;两组并发症比较无显著性差异。结论经皮胸膜活检和内科胸腔镜对于胸腔积液诊断均是安全、有效的方法。     

The role of thoracoscopy in pleural biopsy in cases with pleural effusion

Between April 1985 and July 1989, 125 cases with pleural effusion were admitted to our department. The causes of pleural effusion were carcinomatous pleurisy in 47 cases, infection without tuberculosis in 34 cases, tuberculous pleurisy in 17 cases, cardiac insufficiency and hypoproteinemia in 11 cases, trauma and pneumothorax in nine cases, collagen disease in two cases and unknown origin in five cases. Carcinomatous pleurisy and tuberculous pleurisy, the differential diagnosis of which is very important, comprised 37% and 14% of all cases, respectively. These diseases can be definitively diagnosed by pleural biopsy, effusion cytology and/or effusion culture. In July 1987, we introduced thoracoscopy to improve the ratio of definitive diagnoses. The ratio for carcinomatous pleurisy in the previous term, when thoracoscopy was not being used, was 59%, while that in the latter term, when it was used, was 73%. The ratio for all cases with tuberculous pleurisy was 47%. Prior to June 1987, pleural biopsies in our department were performed with a Cope needle. Using that procedure, a low positive ratio of 50% was obtained. For thoracoscopic pleural biopsies, a high positive ratio of 84% was achieved (in carcinomatous pleurisy, 13 out of 15 cases; in tuberculous pleurisy, three out of four cases). This procedure was performed with minimal patient discomfort and no serious complications. Therefore, thoracoscopic pleural biopsy is recommended as a diagnostic procedure for cases with pleural effusion.     

胸腔镜检查对疑难性胸腔积兴高采烈的诊断价值

目的评价胸腔镜检查对疑难性胸腔积液（胸液）的诊断价值。方法对１１４例经常规检查未明确病因的疑难性胸液患者,采用胸腔镜直视下于病变处取组织行活组织检查（活检）,并与经皮盲目胸膜活检对比。结果胸腔镜诊断率为９１２％（１０４／１１４）,经皮盲目胸膜活检诊断率为２８１％（３２／１１４）,两者间差异有显著性（Ｐ＜０００５）。胸膜间皮瘤、转移癌、结核性胸膜炎胸腔镜下形态不同。血性胸液中恶性占７７１％,草黄色胸液中恶性占５３０％。精制蛋白衍化物（ＰＰＤ）皮试显示：良性病变强阳性反应占４２％,恶性病变阴性反应占４８％。１１４例中无严重并发症。结论胸腔镜检查对疑难性胸液是一种安全、有效、诊断率高的检查手段。     

Pleural amyloidosis in a patient with intractable pleural effusion and multiple myeloma

Pleural involvement of systemic amyloidosis has been rarely reported. We report a case with multiple myeloma presenting an intractable right pleural effusion, in which pleural amyloidosis was diagnosed through pleural biopsy using a Cope needle. The diagnosis of pleural amyloidosis is important, because its refractory pleural effusion should be treated with pleurodesis. Since closed pleural biopsy using a Cope needle is much less invasive than thoracoscopy, the former should be attempted first whenever pleural amyloidosis is suspected.     

Endoscopic approach to pulmonary diseases: Clinical utility of medical thoracoscopy in diagnosis of pleural diseases

Thoracoscopy is useful for diagnosis of a number of lung diseases. We report our recent experience of medical thoracoscopy performed under local anesthesia in 142 cases. Of 124 patients with pleural effusion, 46 had pleuritis carcinomatosa, 11 had pleuritis tuberculosa, and 10 had malignant mesothelioma. We evaluated the utility of thoracoscopic observation and pleural biopsy in these three diseases. Almost of patients with malignant pleural effusion initially undiagnosed by the cytology of pleural effusion were diagnosed by thoracoscopy. Especially in malignant mesothelioma, thoracoscopy allowed accurate diagnosis. No serious complication was observed. Since medical thoracoscopy under local anesthesia is a rapid, easy, safe, and well-tolerated procedure with an excellent diagnostic yield, it is recommended as a diagnostic procedure for cases with pleural effusion.     

Pleural Lavage: A Novel Diagnostic Approach For Diagnosing Exudative Pleural Effusion

Patients with pleural effusions frequently present a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge. The diagnosis is based on the interpretation of the results of thoracentesis or pleural biopsy. When a malignant tumor metastasizes to the pleura, tumor cells can be seeded over the mesothelial surface or in the subserous layer. In the former situation, tumor cells are abundant in pleural fluid, but in the latter, few malignant cells are exfoliated into the pleural cavity, and microscopic deposits may not be visualized at thoracoscopy. Pleural lavage cytologic study at the time of thoracoscopy has not been studied. The purpose of this study was to assess the value of thoracoscopic pleural lavage as an adjuvant in the diagnostic workup of patients with exudative pleural effusions. Fifty patients with exudative pleural effusions were investigated by pleural fluid cytologic findings, Abram's pleural biopsy, thoracoscopy, and pleural lavage cytologic findings. After aspiration of all pleural fluid, 300 mL saline was instilled into the pleural cavity and then recovered for cytologic analysis. The final diagnoses were 32 malignant (64%), 15 tuberculous (30%), and 3 idiopathic (6%) effusions. In the malignant group, thoracoscopic biopsy had the highest yield (94%) followed by lavage cytologic analysis (84%), fluid cytologic analysis (62%), and biopsy with Abram's needle (50%). The sensitivity of combined thoracoscopy and lavage cytologic analysis was 96%. In the patients with tuberculous pleuritis, the yield from the pathologic examination of the biopsy specimen was 93% with thoracoscopy and 60% with the Abrams needle. The diagnostic yield with cytologic analysis on pleural lavage fluid is significantly higher than that on pleural fluid. This is probably because the cells in the lavage fluid are fresher and better preserved than those in the regular pleural fluid, which may have undergone degenerative changes, yielding false-negative results. Pleural lavage cytologic analysis should be performed in patients with suspected malignant pleural effusion who are subjected to diagnostic thoracoscopy, because it may provide additional information to thoracoscopic biopsy. Accepted for publication: 21 November 2000     

Investigation of pleural effusion: comparison between fibreoptic thoracoscopy, needle biopsy and cytology

Twenty-eight patients with exudative pleural effusion have been investigated by fibreoptic thoracoscopy, Abrams needle biopsy and pleural fluid cytology. Sixteen patients had previously had negative pleural biopsies and cytology. Twenty effusions were malignant (16 mesothelioma, four metastatic carcinoma), seven were due to nonspecific inflammation and in one case no abnormality was found. The diagnostic yield for all three techniques combined was 85%, for thoracoscopy alone 65%, Abrams biopsy 60% and cytology 45%. In 12 patients presenting without previous investigation all eight malignant effusions were correctly diagnosed by at least one of the techniques with individual sensitivities of 75% for thoracoscopy, 63% for Abrams and 38% for cytology. Of the 16 patients who had previously had negative investigations 12 had malignant effusions, nine (75%) of which were diagnosed by a combination of the techniques. In this group, the individual sensitivities were 58% for both thoracoscopy and Abrams and 50% for cytology. A correct diagnosis of malignancy was made by a combination of needle biopsy and cytology in 75% of patients with previous investigations and 88% of those without. Fibreoptic thoracoscopy added only two diagnoses of malignancy to those obtained by Abrams and cytology. The limitations of the technique render it unsuitable for routine investigation of pleural effusions.     

35例胸腔镜检查综合分析

本文报告３５例不明原因的胸肺疾患经胸腔镜检查确诊３０例，确诊率８５．７％。其中２６例患者给予经皮胸膜或肺活检，９例明确诊断，阳性率仅３４．６％，明显低于胸腔镜检查。认为对于胸膜和肺外围疾患，胸腔镜检查是一种容易、安全和有效的诊断手段，且阳性率较纤支镜高。对于４５岁以上非血性胸水也要警惕恶性病变，例行胸腔镜检查。     

内科胸腔镜对恶性胸腔积液诊治的临床研究

目的探讨内科胸腔镜在恶性胸腔积液诊治中的临床应用效果。方法对我科以恶性胸腔积液住院的患者,分为胸腔镜组及对照组,对诊治结果进行诊断分析,评价内科胸腔镜对恶性胸腔积液的诊断阳性率和治疗恶性胸腔积液的临床疗效。结果胸腔镜组确诊率为92.9%,对照组确诊率为69.05%。两组患者的治疗效果比较,其完全缓解率具有统计学意义(P<0.05)。结论内科胸腔镜对恶性胸腔积液进行胸膜活检,诊断率阳性率高,在治疗方面,胸腔镜下胸膜固定术能够有效地控制恶性胸腔积液的产生,效果明显优于传统胸腔引流术,值得临床广泛推广应用。     

Der tuberkulöse Pleuraerguss

Approximately one third of the world’s population is infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis and among communicable diseases tuberculosis is the second leading cause of death. The most common type of tuberculosis is pulmonary tuberculosis. Among the extrapulmonary manifestations, tuberculous pleuritis ranks second only after lymphatic tuberculosis. Tuberculous pleuritis is most commonly a disease with acute onset which is self-limiting in the majority of cases. A large proportion of patients though develop some form of active tuberculosis after a latency period. Therefore the correct diagnosis and the initiation of treatment are of the utmost importance. The easiest way to establish the diagnosis of tuberculous pleuritis is to demonstrate an elevated ADA (adenosine deaminase) in a lymphocytic effusion. Should pleural fluid analysis be nondiagnostic, the diagnosis of tuberculous pleuritis can be established with percutaneous closed needle biopsy in over 80% of cases. All patients with an undiagnosed pleural effusion after closed needle biopsy require thoracoscopy with selected biopsies taken under direct vision. The diagnostic yield of thoracoscopy is close to 100% in tuberculous pleuritis.     

Diagnostik der Pleuraerkrankungen

Pleural diseases have quite different causes and are as a rule characterized by pleural effusion and/or thoracic pain. Initial orientation is provided by clinical examination, chest X-ray and thoracic ultrasound. A pleural effusion, which is not self-evident on clinical considerations, has to be clarified by a diagnostic work-up without significant delay. The first diagnostic step is a thoracocentesis. Based on the analysis of total proteins, LDH and cholesterol, the effusion can be characterized as transudative or exudative. The determination of pH is not only helpful in parapneumonic effusions, but in malignant effusions too. Total and differential cell counts help as well as the finding of malignant cells to identify the cause for effusion. Additionally computed tomography has to be carried out. The next steps in unclear cases are blind pleural needle biopsy and thoracoscopy. The stepwise procedure leads to a diagnosis in more than 90% of the cases depending on the underlying disease. Besides inflammation as unspecific or specific pleuritis, the most important entities to consider are malignant effusions, secondary effusions or other rare causes.     

胸膜活检诊断不明原因胸腔积液的临床分析

目的通过胸膜活检术提高不明原因胸腔积液的诊断率。方法用Cope针穿刺法采用多部位穿刺。结果139例胸腔积液患者中,胸膜活检病理诊断为肿瘤43例,结核59例,胸膜活检病理诊断阳性率为73.38%(102/139)。结论胸膜活检可明显提高胸腔积液的诊断率,且操作方便,操伤较小,无严重并发症,是安全有效的诊断手段之一。     

内科胸腔镜联合快速现场评估对不明原因胸腔积液的诊断价值

目的 探讨内科胸腔镜联合快速现场评估(ROSE)对不明原因胸腔积液的诊断价值及临床应用.方法 回顾性分析98例不明原因胸腔积液患者的临床资料,其中内科胸腔镜联合ROSE检查的患者52例,未联合ROSE检查的患者46例.比较两组患者胸膜活检情况、二次检查率、并发症发生率、诊断率,分析ROSE结果 与术后病理一致性及ROS...     

Ultrasound-guided pleural biopsy with Tru-Cut needle

We conducted a study of ultrasound (US)-guided pleural biopsy with a Tru-Cut needle and made a comparison with the results of a traditional pleural biopsy with an Abrams needle. A total of 49 patients with unilateral pleural effusion were included in this study. Twenty-four patients underwent a traditional pleural biopsy with an Abrams needle, and 25 patients underwent a US-guided pleural biopsy with a Tru-Cut needle. The age, sex, and underlying diseases in both groups were compatible. The amount of effusion was much less in the Tru-Cut group. In the patients who underwent the US-guided pleural biopsy with a Tru-Cut needle, the diagnostic sensitivity in pleural tuberculosis was 86 percent (6/7) and in pleural neoplasia it was 70 percent (7/10). In the patients who underwent traditional pleural biopsy with an Abrams needle, the diagnostic sensitivity in pleural tuberculosis was 20 percent (2/10) and in pleural neoplasia it was 44 percent (4/9). The result of US-guided pleural biopsy with a Tru-Cut needle was better than that of pleural biopsy with an Abrams needle, especially in pleural tuberculosis. No complication was found in the Tru-Cut group, but breakage and dislodgment of the tip of an Abrams needle occurred in one patient. The higher diagnostic yield in the Tru-Cut group may be attributed to the US guidance that can delineate the focal pleural abnormalities for biopsy. In conclusion, US-guided pleural biopsy by using a Tru-Cut needle was simple, safe, and well tolerated. It was particularly useful for patients with pleural tumor, thickened pleura, small amounts of pleural effusion, or loculated pleural effusion.     

Evolution of semi-rigid thoracoscopy

Pleural effusions despite being so common, there is no much literature available regarding definite diagnosis for pleural effusions. Application of Light's criteria changed the approach to pleural effusion and till date remains a very useful step in the diagnosis of pleural effusions. Pleural fluid biochemistry and adenosine deaminase (ADA) enzyme levels play a significant role in the diagnosis of tubercular effusion. Studies have shown that levels of ADA are more often higher in tubercular effusion than in any other cause for it. But ADA levels can also be elevated in other types of parapneumonic effusions (PPEs), especially complicated PPEs. Hence it is difficult to distinguish a tubercular pleural effusion (TPE) from other PPEs based on pleural fluid ADA levels alone. LDH/ADA ratio as an indicator for ruling out tuberculosis was analyzed in few studies with high sensitivity and specificity. The pleural fluid cytology has a varying sensitivity, with a maximum of only 60% and it may increase with subsequent tapping. Closed pleural biopsy using a Cope or Abrams needle has a sensitivity up to 80% in cases of tuberculous effusion and 40%–73% in cases of Malignancies.Semi-rigid thoracoscopy not only allows for visualization of the pleura but also helps in procuring the biopsies under direct visualization from the abnormal looking areas. In cases of primary pleural malignancies like mesothelioma, pleurodesis can also be done in the same setting after taking the biopsy, hence reducing the number of procedures. Limitation of the semi-rigid thoracoscopy is smaller sample size and more superficial sampling of the pleura. Cryobiopsy and Electrocautery guided pleural biopsy using the IT knife are the modifications in the semi-rigid thoracoscopy to overcome the drawback of smaller sample size. While navigation band image guided pleuroscopy helps in better visualization of the vasculature of pleura during the biopsy.Management of pleural effusions has evolved over a period of time. Starting with a single criterion based on pleural fluid proteins to semi-rigid thoracoscopy. The inexhaustible research in this field suggests the desperate need for a gold standard procedure with cost effectiveness in the management of undiagnosed pleural effusions. Semi-rigid thoracoscopy has revolutionized the management of undiagnosed pleural effusions, but it has its own limitations. Various modifications have been proposed and tried to overcome the limitations to make it a cost-effective procedure.     

Thoracoscopy for the diagnosis of pleural disease

OBJECTIVE: To assess the accuracy and safety of thoracoscopy for the evaluation of pleural disease. DESIGN: Prospective evaluation of patients referred for thoracoscopy. SETTING: University hospital specializing in chest diseases. PATIENTS: We studied 102 patients with pleural disease, the cause of which had not been determined after initial investigation, including thoracentesis and needle biopsy. Eighty-six patients had pleural effusion, 11 had pleural mass, and 5 had pleural effusion in association with a known primary lung carcinoma. INTERVENTION: All patients had thoracoscopy under local anesthesia with mild sedation. Visually directed biopsies were done of parietal pleura. MEASUREMENTS: We recorded clinical characteristics, laboratory data, findings and duration of thoracoscopy, and any complications associated with the procedure. Hospital and clinic follow-up records were reviewed, and patients were contacted by telephone 12 and 24 months after thoracoscopy to assess their health status. MAIN RESULTS: One hundred and four thoracoscopies were done in 102 patients. A definitive diagnosis was established in 95 patients: 42 had malignant pleural disease and 53 had benign pleural disease. A diagnosis of benign pleural disease using thoracoscopy could not be confirmed in the remaining 7 patients because of insufficient follow-up information. Overall, thoracoscopy was 96% accurate with a sensitivity of 91%, a specificity of 100% and a negative predictive value of 93% for the diagnosis of pleural malignancy. Thoracoscopy was well tolerated under local anesthesia and entailed hospitalization for less than 24 hours in most cases. No deaths occurred, although 1.9% of patients had major complications, and 5.5% had minor complications. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with pleural disease remaining undiagnosed after usual initial investigation, thoracoscopy done under local anesthesia is a rapid, safe, and well-tolerated procedure with an excellent diagnostic yield that is equivalent to that of thoracotomy.     

Diagnostic yield of semi rigid thoracoscopy in unexplained exudative pleural effusion- Experience from tertiary care hospital of east India

IntroductionIn most of the pleural effusion, fluid analysis generally gives the etiological diagnosis but in almost 20% it remains unclear. This study was designed to determine the diagnostic yield of a pleural biopsy using semi rigid thoracoscope and its complication rates.Materials and methodsThis was a retrospective observational study conducted in the Department of Pulmonary Medicine, AIIMS Patna. All the patients diagnosed as unexplained pleural effusion between Jan 2018 and December 2019 were included in the study.ResultsTotal 76 out of 97 patients with unexplained exudative pleural effusion underwent medical thoracoscopy in the given period of 2 years. The mean age of the patients was 57.63 years. There were 46 males and 30 females. 38 patients (50%) had right-sided pleural effusion. More than half (52.6%) of study patients were on Anti-tubercular treatment in which only 11.84% had tuberculosis. In both unilateral and bilateral pleural effusion, the proportions of small, moderate, and large size of pleural effusions were 10.52, 42.10, and 47.36%, respectively. Thoracoscopy yielded a definitive diagnosis in 66 out of 76 patients (86.84%), and in 10 patients (13.15%), biopsy was inconclusive. Of 76 patients, malignancy was confirmed in 58 (76.31%), and tuberculosis in 8 (11.84%) patientsConclusionThis study concludes that, medical thoracoscopy with semi-rigid thoracoscope is an invaluable tool in the diagnosis of patients with unexplained exudative pleural effusion. It is a very simple and safe method with high diagnostic yield and associated with few complications. Malignancy was found to be the most common cause of unexplained exudative pleural effusion     

Diagnostic tools in tuberculous pleurisy: a direct comparative study.

Thoracoscopy is the most accurate yet most expensive tool for establishing the diagnosis of tuberculous (TB) pleurisy. However, most high TB-incidence regions have limited financial resources, lack the infrastructure needed for routine thoracoscopy and require an alternative, cost-effective diagnostic approach for pleural effusions. Altogether, 51 patients with undiagnosed exudative pleural effusions were recruited for a prospective, direct comparison between bronchial wash, pleural fluid microbiology and biochemistry (adenosine deaminase (ADA) and cell count), closed needle biopsy, and medical thoracoscopy. The final diagnosis was TB in 42 patients (82%), malignancy in five (10%) and idiopathic in four patients (8%). Sensitivity of histology, culture and combined histology/culture was 66, 48 and 79%, respectively for closed needle biopsy and 100, 76 and 100%, respectively for thoracoscopy. Both were 100% specific. Pleural fluid ADA of > or = 50 U x L(-1) was 95% sensitive and 89% specific. Combined ADA, lymphocyte/neutrophil ratio > or = 0.75 plus closed needle biopsy reached 93% sensitivity and 100% specificity. A combination of pleural fluid adenosine deaminase, differential cell count and closed needle biopsy has a high diagnostic accuracy in undiagnosed exudative pleural effusions in areas with high incidences of tuberculosis and might substitute medical thoracoscopy at considerably lower expense in resource-poor countries.     

Diagnostic and therapeutic thoracoscopy: techniques and indications in pulmonary medicine

Recently thoracoscopy has been used with increasing frequency for the diagnosis and treatment of pleuropulmonary diseases.Methods: The main requirements for thoracoscopy are rigid telescopes, forceps, scissors, stapler and a video recorder. The procedure can be performed either under general anaesthesia with or without double lumen intubation or under neuroleptanalgesia after inducing an artificial pneumothorax. At the end of the procedure a chest tube should always be inserted even if it is only for a few minutes until the lung re-expands after diagnostic thoracoscopy. Complications are exceptional and mortality is less than 0.017%.Indications and Results: Thoracoscopy is useful for diagnosis of a number of lung diseases. For pleural effusion, the sensitivity of thoracoscopy is 92–97% and its specificity is 99%. This is much better than needle pleural biopsy and/or fluid cytology. In malignant mesothelioma, thoracoscopy allows accurate staging. Similarly in spontaneous pneumothorax, classification based on the endoscopic aspects of the lung according to the classification of Vanderschueren allows a better selection of therapeutic alternatives. For diffuse pulmonary diseases, thoracoscopic lung biopsy has a sensitivity ranging from 60–98% depending on whether the underlying disease is sarcoidosis, idiopathic fibrosis, collagenous diseases or other rare diseases.Interventional thoracoscopy is a rapidly expanding domain. In this review the most widespread techniques are summarized. Thoracoscopic pleurodesis is performed for pleural effusion. It can be achieved by talc poudrage but other methods are available. For spontaneous pneumothorax, pleurodesis must be associated with treatment of the causal lesions. The other therapeutic procedures described here are sympathectomy for palmar hyperhidrosis, pulmonary biopsy using an endo-GIA stapler and pericardial biopsy.     

Current diagnostic approach to pleural effusion

Pleural effusion is a common pneumologic and interdisciplinary problem. Transudate/exsudate discrimination of the pleural fluid by thoracentesis remains the diagnostic basic algorithm. Regardless of a number of new markers, classical LIGHT's criteria comprising the pleural fluid protein- and LDH-values (or their serum ratio respectively) reveal the highest potency with an overall accuracy of 95 %. Expansion to cholesterol-determination (triplet test) may be helpful to identify transudates in indeterminate cases. The need for further local diagnostic evaluation is then usually restricted to exudates. Bacterial pleurisy, malignant and tuberculous effusion are the principal differential diagnoses. With the use of a variety of conventional biochemical, cytologic, immunologic and microbiologic investigations, thoracentesis will allow- or substantially narrow-diagnosis of exudates in about 70 %, with novel cell biological markers in some conditions up to 90 %. In bacterial pleurisy thoracentesis provides information directly relevant to management in terms of local interventions. It also constitutes a platform for more invasive imaging- or endoscopy-guided investigations with a focus on medical thoracoscopy (pleuroscopy). Blind needle biopsy is diagnostic in a range of 40 - 70 % both in malignancy and inflammatory disease, thoracoscopy may clarify exudative conditions in about 95 %. Thus malignancy may be specifically diagnosed in 97 % of cases, tuberculous effusion in virtually 100 %. The value of thoracoscopy is augmented by interventional options including complete evacuation of the pleural cavity, eventually followed by talc pleurodesis ("poudrage") in recurrent effusions or adhesiolysis, irrigation and fibrinolysis protocols in certain inflammatory conditions. These combined features as accomplished in local anesthesia on a remarkably high safety level characterise medical thoracoscopy as a gold standard tool for the management of pleural disease even in comparison to more elaborate surgical procedures.