title: Postpartum pleural effusion.
abstract: A prospective ultrasound study investigated the reportedly high frequency of asymptomatic pleural effusions in the early postpartum period. The pleural space of 50 women within 1-45 h of delivery was scanned with a real-time sector scanner. Only one woman had a pleural effusion. This patient had severe pre-eclampsia with clinically apparent pulmonary oedema. Our findings do not substantiate the previously reported high frequency of pleural fluid in healthy women immediately after delivery.
authors.affiliation: Birmingham Maternity Hospital, Queen Elizabeth Medical Centre, Edgbaston.
authors.forename: U L
authors.initials: UL
authors.lastname: Udeshi
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: McHugo
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Crawford
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010996:Pleural Effusion / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D011247:Pregnancy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011644:Puerperal Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011859:Radiography; D014463:Ultrasonography