title: Ultrasound estimation of volume of postoperative pleural effusion in cardiac surgery patients.
abstract: The aim of this study was to establish a practical simplified formula to facilitate the management of a frequently occurring postoperative complication, pleural effusion. Chest ultrasonography with better sensitivity and reliability in the diagnosis of pleural effusions than chest X-ray can be repeated serially at the bedside without any radiation risk. One hundred and fifty patients after cardiac surgery with basal pleural opacity on chest X-ray have been included in our prospective observational study during a two-year period. Effusion was confirmed on postoperative day (POD) 5.9+/-3.2 per chest ultrasound sonography. Inclusion criteria for subsequent thoracentesis based on clinical grounds alone and were not protocol-driven. Major inclusion criteria were: dyspnea and peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO(2)) levels < or = 92% and the maximal distance between mid-height of the diaphragm and visceral pleura (D > or = 30 mm). One hundred and thirty-five patients (90%) were drained with a 14-G needle if according to the simplified formula: V (ml)=[16 x D (mm)] the volume of the pleural effusion was around 500 ml. The success rate of obtaining fluid was 100% without any complications. There is a high accuracy between the estimated and drained pleural effusion. Simple quantification of pleural effusion enables time and cost-effective decision-making for thoracentesis in postoperative patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic-, Cardiac- and Vascular Surgery, Tübingen University Hospital, Tübingen, Germany. engin.usta@med.uni-tuebingen.de
authors.forename: Engin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Usta
authors.forename: Migdat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mustafi
authors.forename: Gerhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ziemer
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000465:Algorithms; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D019918:Heart Valve Prosthesis Implantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008954:Models, Biological; D019152:Paracentesis; D018579:Patient Selection; D010996:Pleural Effusion / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011859:Radiography; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013997:Time Factors; D014463:Ultrasonography