Pleural effusion

Introduction: Pleural effusion

Pleural effusion: Fluid in the pleural spaces. More detailed information about the symptoms, causes, and treatments of Pleural effusion is available below.

Symptoms of Pleural effusion

• Difficulty breathing
• Fluid between the pleural layers

Home Diagnostic Testing

Home medical testing related to Pleural effusion:

• Home Lung Function Tests

Medical Textbooks Online about Pleural effusion

Book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Diagnostic Tests for Pleural effusion

• Chest examination
• Chest x-rays
• Laboratory tests of pleural fluid - when the fluid is extracted as a treatment.

Read more about tests for Pleural effusion

Wrongly Diagnosed with Pleural effusion?

• Misdiagnosis of Pleural effusion
• Underlying causes of Pleural effusion (possibly wrongly diagnosed)

Misdiagnosis and Pleural effusion

Chronic lung diseases hard to diagnose: Some of the chronic lung diseases are difficult to diagnose. Even the well-knowns conditions such as asthma or lung cancer often fail to be diagnosed early. Some of the chronic lung diseases with diagnostic difficulties include asthma (perhaps surprisingly), COPD, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, cystic fibrosis, mesothelioma, smoker's cough, AIDS-related respiratory conditions (see AIDS), chronic pneumonia, and other respiratory diseases. Rare possibilities include diseases like psittacosis (bird-related lung infection). See other types of chronic lung diseases....read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Pleural effusion

Causes of Pleural effusion

• Heart failure
• Lung cancer
• Pulmonary embolism
• Lung inflammation
• Pleurisy

See full list of 7 causes of Pleural effusion

More information about causes of Pleural effusion:

• Medications, drugs, or substances causing Pleural effusion (3 listings)
• Underlying causes of Pleural effusion
• Pleural effusion as a complication caused by other conditions
• Pleural effusion as a symptom

Treatments for Pleural effusion

• Needle aspiration of fluid
• Tube aspiration of fluid
• Treatment of any underlying cause

Read more about treatments for Pleural effusion

Videos for Pleural effusion

Patient Surveys for Pleural effusion

• Patient Profile Survey
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• Survey about the symptoms of your Pleural effusion
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Reseach about Pleural effusion

Visit our research pages for current research about Pleural effusion treatments.

Clinical Trials for Pleural effusion

The US based website ClinicalTrials.gov lists information on both federally and privately supported clinical trials using human volunteers.

Some of the clinical trials listed on ClinicalTrials.gov for Pleural effusion include:

• Multiple Biomarkers in Undiagnosed Pleural Effusion - This study is currently recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Talc in Treating Patients With Malignant Pleural Effusion - This study is no longer recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - talc
• Bleomycin, Doxycycline, or Talc in Treating Patients With Malignant Pleural Effusions - This study is no longer recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - bleomycin,doxycycline,talc
• ILX-295501 in Treating Patients With Stage III or Stage IV Ovarian Cancer That Has Not Responded to Previous Treatment - This study is no longer recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - ILX-295501
• Decitabine in Treating Patients With Unresectable Lung or Esophageal Cancer or Malignant Mesothelioma of the Pleura - This study has been completed (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - decitabine

See full list of 34 Clinical Trials for Pleural effusion

Statistics for Pleural effusion

• Medical statistics for Pleural effusion
• Death and Mortality statistics for Pleural effusion
• Society statistics for Pleural effusion

Types of Pleural effusion

• Hemothorax - pleural effusion due to blood.
• Empyema - pleural effusion due to pus.

Read more about Types of Pleural effusion

Medical Guidebooks and Ebooks for Pleural effusion

• Icon Health Sourcebook for Pleural effusion

See all guides and ebooks for Pleural effusion

Stories from Users Related to Pleural effusion

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User Interactive Forums

Read about other experiences, ask a question about Pleural effusion, or answer someone else's question, on our message boards:

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• Share your misdiagnosis story.
• What is the best treatment for this?
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Definitions of Pleural effusion:

Increased amounts of fluid within the pleural cavity containing no malignant cells - (Source - Diseases Database)