Yaseen Khan, Bilal, Sumera Zia.
Etiological spectrum of exudative pleural effusion in a tertiary care hospital based on closed pleural biopsy.
Ann Pak Inst Med Sci Jan ;7(3):133-6.

Objectives: To find the etiology of the common causes of exudative pleural effusion on closed pleural biopsy. Study Design: Observational study. Place and Duration: Department of Medicine, Medical B unit, Lady Reading Hospital Peshawar, from March 2009 to December 2010 Materials and Methods: Study group included one hundred patients of exudative pleural effusion where etiological diagnosis could not be yielded by conventional cytological, biochemical, and microbiological investigations. All patients underwent pleural biopsy using Abram’s needle in standard way. Average 4 biopsy specimens were taken which were examined histopathologically. Histopathology results were collected and results were analyzed using SPSS 10. Results: Out of 100 patients, 60(60%) and 40(40%) were male and female, respectively. The most commonly affected age group was 30 to 65 years (mean 47.5 years).Histopathology revealed the cause in 81(81%) cases. Tuberculosis, malignancy and non specific inflammation were seen in 53%, 28% and 19% cases respectively. Those with nonspecific inflammation were further investigated accordingly. Conclusion: Tuberculosis is the most common cause of exudative pleural effusion followed by malignancy in our set up. The role of closed pleural biopsy in cases of exudative pleural effusion is still pivotal as it yields a specific diagnosis in image of cases. This of particular importance in our set up where the facilities of thoracoscopy and imaging guided cutting needle biopsies are not easily available. Pleural biopsy is safe and should be routine complimentary diagnostic procedure in patients with exudative pleural effusion.

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