MALIGNANT PLEURAL EFFUSION

Course overview

MALIGNANT PLEURAL EFFUSIONS (MPE), WITH AN INCIDENCE OF 150,000 NEW CASES A YEAR, HAVE LONG BEEN RECOGNIZED AS A CAUSE OF SIGNIFICANT MORBIDITY IN ADVANCED CANCER PATIENTS. MORE RECENTLY, THE PRESENCE OF A LOCULATED PLEURAL EFFUSION HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED AS AN INDEPENDENT RISK FACTOR FOR POOR PROGNOSIS. A VARIETY OF THERAPEUTIC OPTIONS EXIST FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF MPE. SPENGLER, IN 1901 WAS THE FIRST TO PERFORM CHEMICAL PLEURODESIS WITH THE USE OF HYPERTONIC GLUCOSE. SINCE THEN, THERE HAS BEEN CONTROVERSY OVER THE IDEAL AGENT FOR PERFORMING CHEMICAL PLEURODESIS. HOWEVER, TALC HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED AS THE MOST WIDELY USED AND STUDIED AGENT. THIS ACTIVITY PROVIDES A CONCEPTUAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM'S ETIOLOGY, PATHOPHYSIOLOGY, EVALUATION, AND MANAGEMENT OF MPE.