Role of trans thoracic ultrasonography in pleurodesis for malignant pleural effusion

Background Malignant pleural effusions (MEP) are common in cancer patients, often secondary to metastasis from lung or breast cancer. Aim To evaluate the role of transthoracic ultrasonography in guiding the pleurodesis pathway and assess its success. Patients and methods This observational case-control study was conducted on patients with MEP and indicated for pleurodesis admitted to the Chest Department of Kafr El-Sheikh University Hospital from January 2023 to 2024. This study included 45 patients. Five patients were excluded as they were diagnosed with an unexpandable lung after tube insertion. The remaining 40 patients were distributed in a 1: 1 ratio to receive either Transthoracic ultrasonography-guided care (in group A) or standard care (in group B). Results Time to chest tube removal (as the primary outcome) was significantly earlier in group A (1.6±0.5 vs. 3.3±0.85 in group B, P