Connect
← Return to Has anyone experienced recurrent pleural effusion with no clear cause
Discussion
Has anyone experienced recurrent pleural effusion with no clear cause
Lung Health | Last Active: Oct 29 9:08pm | Replies (14)Comment receiving replies
Can I ask how they monitor your effusions? X-ray, Ultrasound?
My husband had open heart surgery in August … he has had 11 Thoracentesis procedures since then , for bilateral effusions…
His team seems to rely on X-rays to evaluate the effusions … but they have been less than helpful .. “ trace of effusions “ on the X-ray , can turn out to be 900 ml of fluid .
CT scan and ultrasound have been the most accurate scans..I can understand not wanting him to have too many CTs but ultrasounds should be benign and cheaper
Replies to "Can I ask how they monitor your effusions? X-ray, Ultrasound? My husband had open heart surgery..."
Connect
@trki My pleural effusion
is being monitored by a CT scan and ultrasound at the doctor’s office, and if anything further needs to be done, it’s always a CT scan. It used to be X-rays, but not anymore they just go by the CT scans. The surgery wasn’t 100% successful, so I’m left with a pocket of fluid, but it’s not expected to get bigger since my lungs are sealed. By the pleurodisis
Before the surgery, I had nine thoracentisis, almost every month.
each removing 1.5–2 liters of fluid. I’ve been dealing with this for a year, and while it’s frustrating not knowing why it started, thankfully I don’t have any symptoms, and they’re just monitoring it.