THORACOSCOPIC MANIFESTATIONS OF PLEURAL TUBERCULOSIS

Pleural effusion is the most common form of extra-pulmonary tuberculosis. With
the advancement of endoscopic techniques, thoracoscopy has been identified as a diagnostic procedure
for Pleural TB. The aim of this study was to evaluate the thoracoscopic manifestations of pleural
tuberculosis and its association with the pathological findings of pleural tuberculosis.
Materials & Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 85 patients with unexplained exudative pleural
effusion were studied over a period of 12 months. Patients with general anesthesia underwent
thoracoscopy. Multiple biopsies were obtained from pleura and were evaluated using pathological
examination.
Results: Based on the pathology results, the patients were divided into two groups with the final
diagnosis of TB as group 1 (40 patients) and other diagnoses as group 2 (45 patients). Thoracoscopic
findings of group 1 included pleural effusion, multiple nodules, adhesion, Caseous necrosis, thickening,
pleural edema, and single plurilateral nodules were found in 100%, 70%,67.5%, 60%, 30%,17.5 %
and2.5% of cases, respectively. Among these findings, caseous necrosis, multiple nodules, adhesion,
thickening, and pleural edema had a statistically significant association with the ultimate pathological
findings of TB.
Conclusion: In cases of suspicion of pleural TB, Thoracoscopy and direct pleural observation and
multiple biopsies of the pleura are suitable methods. In the case of caseous necrosis, multiple nodules,
adhesions, thickening, and pleural edema may be suspected in the presence of tuberculosis