Thoracentesis

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Pleural fluid aspiration; Pleural tap

Normally the pleural cavity contains only a very small amount of fluid.

Testing the fluid will help your health care provider determine the cause of pleural effusion. Possible causes include:

• Cancer
• Cirrhosis
• Heart failure
• Infection
• Inflammation
• Malnutrition
• Kidney disease

If your health care provider suspects that you have an infection, a culture of the fluid may be done to test for bacteria.

Review Date: 09/15/2010
Reviewed By: David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine; Denis Hadjiliadis, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org).

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