Effect of patient positioning after needle aspiration lung biopsy.
Fifty-five patients who underwent fluoroscopically guided needle aspiration lung biopsy were randomly assigned to one of two postbiopsy treatment groups: Patients were placed recumbent with puncture site either down (n = 36) or up (n = 19) for at least 1 hour. No significant difference in pneumothorax rate was seen between the two groups. Chest tube placement, however, was required in 21% (four of 19) of the puncture-site-up group versus 3% (one of 36) of the puncture-site-down group, which was a significant difference (P = .04). Puncture-site-down postbiopsy positioning reduces the proportion of patients requiring chest tube placement after lung biopsy.
Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston.
E H
EH
Moore
J
J
LeBlanc
S A
SA
Montesi
M L
ML
Richardson
J A
JA
Shepard
T C
TC
McLoud
D001707:Biopsy, Needle / Q000379:methods*; D015505:Chest Tubes; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000473:pathology*; D011030:Pneumothorax / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy; D011187:Posture; D011446:Prospective Studies