Pleural effusions in non-transplanted cystic fibrosis patients
Adam R Belanger1, Kimtuyen Nguyen1, Umar Osman2
1Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, University of North Carolina, 8007 Burnett Womack Building, CB 7219, Chapel Hill, NC 27713, United States.
Background:
Pleural effusions are considered rare in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. There is a paucity of available information in the literature concerning the nature and significance of pleural effusions in non-transplanted CF patients.
Methods:
We conducted a multicenter retrospective evaluation of non-transplanted adult CF patients. Given the small sample size, only descriptive statistics were performed.
Results:
A total of 17 CF patients with pleural effusion were identified, of whom 9 patients underwent thoracentesis. The crude incidence of pleural effusion was 43 per 10,000 person-years in hospitalized CF patients at large CF centers. All sampled effusions were inflammatory in nature. All samples submitted for culture grew at least one organism.
Conclusion:
Pleural effusions are rare in adult non-transplanted CF patients. These fluid collections appear to be quite inflammatory with a higher rate of empyema than in the general population.
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