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Manometry in pleural drainage: essential practice or over-rated gadget?

  • Pleural Diseases and Mesothelioma (G Lee, Section Editor)
  • Published:
Current Pulmonology Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

About 1.5 million people are diagnosed with pleural effusion each year in the USA with approximately 180,000 thoracenteses performed each year. The measurement of pleural pressure during therapeutic thoracentesis has been proposed as a useful benchmark to guide therapeutic thoracentesis. The proposed benefits of pleural manometry include diagnosis of unexpandable lung, prevention of re-expansion pulmonary edema (REPE), and pneumothorax ex vacuo, as well as prediction of successful pleurodesis in malignant effusions. Although pleural manometry undeniably offers insights into pleural space physiology, the paucity of data on improved clinical outcomes and the absence of standardized methodology and teaching opportunities have hampered its widespread adoption by pulmonologists.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Section of Pulmonary Diseases, Critical Care and Environmental Medicine, Tulane University Health Sciences Center, 1430 Tulane Avenue, SL-9, New Orleans, LA, 70112, USA

    Fayez Kheir

  2. Division of Allergy, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Vanderbilt University, 1161 21st Avenue South, Room T-1218 MCN, Nashville, TN, 37232-2650, USA

    Fabien Maldonado

Authors
  1. Fayez Kheir
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  2. Fabien Maldonado
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Correspondence to Fabien Maldonado.

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Fayez Kheir and Fabien Maldonado each declare no potential conflicts of interest.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Pleural Diseases and Mesothelioma

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Kheir, F., Maldonado, F. Manometry in pleural drainage: essential practice or over-rated gadget?. Curr Pulmonol Rep 5, 7–12 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13665-016-0131-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13665-016-0131-2

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