Pleural Diseases

Abstract

Pleural effusions are common in clinical medicine. Patients with pleural effusion may be seen by the internist (cardiologist, congestive heart failure; gastroenterologist, pancreatitis) or surgeon (cardiothoracic surgeon, post— cardiac injury syndrome; gynecologist, Meigs' syndrome). Indeed, pleural effusions are a mirror of systemic disease. Dr Light has written this book on pleural disease based on years of clinical observation and research. There are 24 chapters in this book, three chapters devoted to anatomy of the pleura, physiology of the pleural space, and radiology of pleural disease. An additional two chapters concentrate on clinical manifestations of pleural disease and the usefulness of pleural fluid analysis and the general approach to a patient with a pleural effusion. The two concluding chapters discuss thoracentesis, pleural biopsy, and chest tubes. In between there are chapters on the specific etiologies of pleural effusions covering the spectrum from congestive heart failure to malignant pleural effusions to chylothorax.