Abstract
In recent years, there is a tendency to use small-bore catheters for pleural pathologies. We aimed to share our experiences about small-bore catheter usage in different pleural diseases.
Between 2006 and 2011, 287 patients with pleural pathologies were treated via 309 small-bore (10F) thoracic catheters. There were 204 male and 83 female patients (mean age: 52). There were 265 unilateral single catheter insertions, 15 bilateral insertions and 7 two-catheters insertions in same hemithorax consecutively. The most frequent indication was pleural effusion (147 catheters), 103 of them were due to malignant pleural diseases. Small-bore catheters were performed in 133 cases with pneumothorax, 21 cases with hemothorax and 8 cases with hemopneumothorax. Pleurodesis were performed effectively with povidion iodine in one, talc in 35 cases.
In 7 patients (3 malignant pleural effusion, 1 empyema, 2 spontaneous pneumothorax and 1 traumatic pneumothorax) second catheter insertion in different localization was needed. In 15 patients (7 spontaneous pneumothorax and 5 malignant pleural effusion, 1 barotrauma pneumothorax, 1 pneumothorax as complication, 1 empyema) pleurocan catheters were ineffective and they changed with small-bore trocar catheters. Our results showed 7.2% failure ratio.
Six patients underwent operation because of persisted air leakage.
Mean duration time of the catheters were 5.6 days (1-20 days). They showed difference depending upon the pleural pathologies. For pleurodesis, mean duration time of plerocan catheters was 4.7 days.
We found small bore catheters very effective in not only malignant pleural effusion and pneumothorax but also in hemothorax and parapneumonic effusions.
- © 2012 ERS