Author/Editor		Crnjac, Anton
Title		The significance of thoracoscopic mechanical pleurodesis for the treatment of malignant pleural effusions
Type		članek
Source		Wien Klin Wochenschr
Vol. and No.		Letnik 116, št. Suppl 2
Publication year		2004
Volume		str. 28-32
Language		eng
Abstract		Background: Malignant pleural effusion (MPE) is a frequent and serious complication of numerous malignant tumors in the human organism. The patients are suffering from the primary disease, and the pleural effusion causes dyspnea, thus reducing the quality of their survival time. In our study we wished to establish the significance of thoracoscopic mechanical pleurodesis (TMP) as a new method for the resolution of this pathology, by comparing the results with those of thoracotomy with pleurectomy (TP) and thoracic drainage (TD). The main criterion for the effectiveness of each method was the absence of pleural effusion in a certain time interval. Patients and methods: 84 patients with recurrent MPE and primary tumors at various locations were divided into three groups according to the type of palliative intervention. The patients were classified according to the indication guidelines for individual procedures and their general condition. Group 1 consisted of 44 patients in whom TMP was performed, group 2 consisted of 17 patients with primary tumors in the thoracic region in whom thoracotomy with pleurectomy (TP) was performed, and in group 3 there were 26 patients with TD. We compared the effectiveness of individual palliative methods by periodical X-ray checks, numbers of complications, length of TD and hospitalization, and changes in spirometric values after individual procedures. The t-test was used in statistic processing of the data. Results: After six months, radiological investigation revealed recurrence of pleural effusion in three patients in group 1 (93.2% efficacy), no recurrence in group 2 (100% efficacy), and recurrence in 18 patients in group 3 (25.0% efficacy). There were fewer postoperative complications in group 1, the duration of TD and hospitalization was significantly shorter, and spirometric values increased. (Abstract truncated at 2000 characters).
Descriptors		PLEURAL EFFUSION, MALIGNANT PLEURODESIS THORACOSCOPY TREATMENT OUTCOME