Active clinical trials for "Pleural Effusion"

Lung cancer is a common cancer, associated with a high mortality rate. Pleural effusions are common in lung cancer, developing in up to 40% of patients. Ascites is common in patients with abdominal malignancies and can be the presenting feature in up to 50% of patients. There is a need for new techniques to improve our diagnostic ability of cancer. FTIR technology could enable a point-of-care test that would provide an initial diagnosis that may determine a change in treatment at the time of the investigation.

In this study, the investigators will collect data on patients who are using the Aspira system as part of their clinical care for the management of recurrent pleural effusion. Data will be collected on patient demographics, placement of the pleural catheter, palliation of dyspnea, complication rates, and rates of spontaneous pleurodesis.

Chest physiotherapy (CP) facilitates the absorption of fluid in the pleural cavity and reduces the formation of fibrous adhesions in patients with pleural infection, allowing a faster clinical, functional and radiological improve. The aim of the study is to determine if the CP associated with conventional medical treatment (CT) improves functional sequelae secondary to pleural infectious.

Drainage of air and fluid from the chest cavity using plastic tubes (chest drains) is an essential tool in Chest Medicine. A common complication of drain insertion is accidental removal of the drain, usually as a result of inadequate securing techniques, with rates of up to 1 in 5 reported. This often results in the need for further procedures (including drain re-siting), with associated additional risk to the patient and an increase in health care costs. One suggested method to reduce premature drain removal is to use chest drains with ballooned tips, much like a bladder catheter. These would provide a physical obstruction inside the chest cavity at the insertion site, whilst being easy to use as stitching or extensive taping may not be required. The investigators propose a trial of a dedicated ballooned chest drain to investigate whether a reduction in drain re-siting rates can be achieved. Pain scores will also be assessed during this trial to ensure that irritation of the lining of the lung or chest wall by the balloon is not excessive.

Malignant pleural effusion (MPE) is a complication of almost any site of primary cancer as well as primary tumors of the pleura. Half of MPE patients have non-expendable trapped lungs not suitable for talc pleurodesis. Indwelling pleural catheters (IPCs), however, can be used in this cohort of patients, bringing about an improvement in dyspnea and quality of life (QOL). The aim of this study is to obtain pilot data - comparing patients receiving two different types of indwelling pleural catethers normally used in clinical practice (10 patients receiving Pleurocath® and 10 patients receiving PleurX®) - for power calculation of a Randomized Controlled Trial comparing two different drainages for MPE trapped lung.

Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) talc pleurodesis is often carried out in patients with malignant recurrent pleural effusion to relieve symptoms and prevent recurrence. General anesthesia and one lung ventilation is the standard type of anesthesia employed for VATS although recently, thoracic epidural anesthesia (TEA) in awake spontaneously ventilating patients is being increasingly employed to perform several cardio-thoracic surgery procedures in an attempt of minimize operative risks and facilitate resumption of daily-life activity. The investigators have reasoned that for a simple and palliative procedure such as talc pleurodesis in cancer patients is, use of general anesthesia and one-lung ventilation might be considered a potential cause of morbidity and delayed recovery. The investigators have also hypothesized TEA could be considered an optimal type of anesthesia in this setting leading to a fast recovery a reduced overall workload in medical care. In this single-center randomized study, the investigators have comparatively assessed the impact of awake TEA versus general anesthesia and one-lung ventilation on comprehensive results of VATS talc pleurodesis.

The purpose of this study is to determine whether chest tubes can be safely removed without considering how much fluid is draining through the tube.

Thoracentesis is a very common procedure, rarely associated with severe complications. One relatively common complication is chest discomfort, which is most of the time felt to be secondary to negative pleural pressures generated during the procedure. While most proceduralists use suction to drain the pleural fluid, some drain effusions by gravity only. The investigators propose to evaluate whether gravity-driven thoracentesis results in less discomfort for patients than suction-drive thoracentesis.

The LTI-01-2001 study is a double-blind, placebo-controlled, Phase 2 study to evaluate LTI-01 (single-chain urokinase plasminogen activator, scuPA) in patients with infected, non-draining pleural effusions.

The purpose of this study is to determine if the use of fortified skimmed mother's milk is a safe alternative to specialized formula in the treatment of chylothorax following cardiothoracic surgery.