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Pleural effusion - Symptom

Alternative Names

Fluid in the chest; Fluid on the lung; Pleural fluid

Symptoms:

Chest pain, usually a sharp pain that is worse with cough or deep breaths
Cough
Fever
Hiccups
Rapid breathing
Shortness of breath

Sometimes there are no symptoms.

Signs and tests:

During a physical examination, the doctor will listen to the sound of your breathing with a stethoscope and may tap on your chest to listen for dullness.

The following tests may help to confirm a diagnosis:

Chest CT scan
Chest x-ray
Pleural fluid analysis (examining the fluid under a microscope to look for bacteria, amount of protein, and presence of cancer cells)
Thoracentesis (a sample of fluid is removed with a needle inserted between the ribs)
Thoracic CT
Ultrasound of the chest

Lungs

Respiratory system

Pleural cavity

Reviewed last on: 9/15/2010
David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine; and 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.

References

Broaddus C, Light RW. Pleural effusion. In: Mason RJ, Broaddus CV, Martin TR, et al, eds. Textbook of Respiratory Medicine. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier;2010:chap 73.

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