Contarini’s syndrome refers to the occurrence of bilateral pleural effusion which has different causes for each hemithorax. Based on extensive literature search, this is a rare finding and to date, only two published cases have recorded tuberculous effusion on one side. In this paper, the authors aim to present a case of Contarini’s syndrome, and to give emphasis that such condition with different etiologies exists and should be considered in managing bilateral effusion. This is a case of a 69-year-old female with a 7-week history of dyspnea, 2-pillow orthopnea, fever, and right-sided chest discomfort. Patient sought consultation and was prescribed with Diclofenac and Cefalexin with no relief. Patient was then admitted and intubated due to worsening dyspnea. Patient was managed as COVID-19 confirmed critical with viral myocarditis, CAP-HR, and diabetic ketoacidosis. Initial chest x-ray showed right-sided pleural effusion. Thoracentesis was done and revealed exudative pleural fluid (PF) with WBC of 20,000 with neutrophilic predominance and negative RT-PCR MTB. Cytology revealed acute inflammatory pattern. Klebsiella pneumoniae ESBL was isolated. Antibiotics were shifted to levofloxacin and meropenem. Repeat chest x-ray showed left-sided pleural effusion. Thoracentesis was done and revealed exudative PF with WBC of 1,680 with neutrophilic predominance. No organism was isolated. RT-PCR for MTB was detected. Thus, anti-TB therapy was initiated. However, ETA TB culture showed resistance to isoniazid, rifampicin, and pyrazinamide. Patient was referred to PMDT for MDR-TB treatment. Bilateral effusion has resolved with no recurrence, and with uneventful removal of bilateral chest tubes. Patient was eventually extubated and transferred to the ward. Patient however developed HAP, was re-intubated and eventually expired due to the septic shock from VAP. This case report highlights the importance of weighing risk versus benefit in deciding to perform bilateral thoracentesis when there is a clinical suspicion of an alternate or concurrent diagnosis.

: Contarini’s syndrome refers to the occurrence of bilateral pleural effusion which has different causes for each hemithorax. Based on extensive literature search, this is a rare finding and to date, only two published cases have recorded tuberculous effusion on one side. In this paper, the authors aim to present a case of Contarini’s syndrome, and to give emphasis that such condition with different etiologies exists and should be considered in managing bilateral effusion. : This is a case of a 69-year-old female with a 7-week history of dyspnea, 2-pillow orthopnea, fever, and right-sided chest discomfort. Patient sought consultation and was prescribed with Diclofenac and Cefalexin with no relief. Patient was then admitted and intubated due to worsening dyspnea. Patient was managed as COVID-19 confirmed critical with viral myocarditis, CAP-HR, and diabetic ketoacidosis. Initial chest x-ray showed right-sided pleural effusion. Thoracentesis was done and revealed exudative pleural fluid (PF) with WBC of 20,000 with neutrophilic predominance and negative RT-PCR MTB. Cytology revealed acute inflammatory pattern. Klebsiella pneumoniae ESBL was isolated. Antibiotics were shifted to levofloxacin and meropenem. Repeat chest x-ray showed left-sided pleural effusion. Thoracentesis was done and revealed exudative PF with WBC of 1,680 with neutrophilic predominance. No organism was isolated. RT-PCR for MTB was detected. Thus, anti-TB therapy was initiated. However, ETA TB culture showed resistance to isoniazid, rifampicin, and pyrazinamide. Patient was referred to PMDT for MDR-TB treatment. Bilateral effusion has resolved with no recurrence, and with uneventful removal of bilateral chest tubes. Patient was eventually extubated and transferred to the ward. Patient however developed HAP, was re-intubated and eventually expired due to the septic shock from VAP. This case report highlights the importance of weighing risk versus benefit in deciding to perform bilateral thoracentesis when there is a clinical suspicion of an alternate or concurrent diagnosis.
Pleural effusion ; Thoracentesis ; COVID-19

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the risk factors for performing bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) in children with Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (MPP) and pulmonary consolidation, and to construct a predictive model for performing BAL in these children. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 202 children with MPP who were hospitalized in the Department of Pediatrics, Changzhou No. 2 People's Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University, from August 2019 to September 2022. According to whether BAL was performed, they were divided into BAL group with 100 children and non-BAL group with 102 children. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify the risk factors for performing BAL in MPP children with pulmonary consolidation. Rstudio software (R4.2.3) was used to establish a predictive model for performing BAL, and the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve, C-index, and calibration curve were used to assess the predictive performance of the model. RESULTS: The multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that the fever duration, C-reactive protein levels, D-dimer levels, and presence of pleural effusion were risk factors for performing BAL in MPP children with pulmonary consolidation (P<0.05). A nomogram predictive model was established based on the results of the multivariate logistic regression analysis. In the training set, this model had an area under the ROC curve of 0.915 (95%CI: 0.827-0.938), with a sensitivity of 0.826 and a specificity of 0.875, while in the validation set, it had an area under the ROC curve of 0.983 (95%CI: 0.912-0.996), with a sensitivity of 0.879 and a specificity of 1.000. The Bootstrap-corrected C-index was 0.952 (95%CI: 0.901-0.986), and the calibration curve demonstrated good consistency between the predicted probability of the model and the actual probability of occurrence. CONCLUSIONS The predictive model established in this study can be used to assess the likelihood of performing BAL in MPP children with pulmonary consolidation, based on factors such as fever duration, C-reactive protein levels, D-dimer levels, and the presence of pleural effusion. Additionally, the model demonstrates good predictive performance.
Child ; Humans ; Mycoplasma pneumoniae ; Retrospective Studies ; C-Reactive Protein/analysis* ; Pneumonia, Mycoplasma/diagnosis* ; Bronchoalveolar Lavage ; Pleural Effusion

Humans ; Mesothelioma/pathology* ; Mesothelioma, Malignant ; Pleural Neoplasms/diagnosis* ; Pleural Effusion, Malignant ; Pleural Effusion/pathology*

OBJECTIVES: To study the clinical characteristics of plastic bronchitis (PB) in children and investigate the the risk factors for recurrence of PB. METHODS: This was a retrospective analysis of medical data of children with PB who were hospitalized in Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from January 2012 to July 2022. The children were divided into a single occurrence of PB group and a recurrent PB group and the risk factors for recurrence of PB were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 107 children with PB were included, including 61 males (57.0%) and 46 females (43.0%), with a median age of 5.0 years, and 78 cases (72.9%) were over 3 years old. All the children had cough, 96 children (89.7%) had fever, with high fever in 90 children. Seventy-three children (68.2%) had shortness of breath, and 64 children (59.8%) had respiratory failure. Sixty-six children (61.7%) had atelectasis and 52 children (48.6%) had pleural effusion. Forty-seven children (43.9%) had Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection, 28 children (26.2%) had adenovirus infection, and 17 children (15.9%) had influenza virus infection. Seventy-one children (66.4%) had a single occurrence of PB, and 36 cases (33.6%) had recurrent occurrence of PB (≥2 times). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that involvement of ≥2 lung lobes (OR=3.376) under bronchoscopy, continued need for invasive ventilation after initial removal of plastic casts (OR=3.275), and concomitant multi-organ dysfunction outside the lungs (OR=2.906) were independent risk factors for recurrent occurrence of PB (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS Children with pneumonia accompanied by persistent high fever, shortness of breath, respiratory failure, atelectasis or pleural effusion should be highly suspected with PB. Involvement of ≥2 lung lobes under bronchoscopy, continued need for invasive ventilation after initial removal of plastic casts, and concomitant multi-organ dysfunction outside the lungs may be risk factors for recurrent occurrence of PB.
Female ; Male ; Child ; Humans ; Child, Preschool ; Multiple Organ Failure ; Retrospective Studies ; Bronchitis/etiology* ; Dyspnea ; Pleural Effusion ; Pulmonary Atelectasis ; Plastics ; Respiratory Insufficiency

BACKGROUND: Thyroid function abnormality (TFA) is one of the common adverse reactions in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with immunotherapy, but the risk factors of TFA and its relationship with efficacy are not completely clear. The purpose of this study was to explore the risk factors of TFA and its relationship with efficacy in patients with advanced NSCLC after immunotherapy. METHODS: The general clinical data of 200 patients with advanced NSCLC in The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from July 1, 2019 to June 31, 2021 were collected and analyzed retrospectively. χ² test and multivariate Logistic regression were used to explore the risk factors of TFA. Kaplan-Meier curve was drawn and Log-rank test was used for comparison between groups. Univariate and multivariate Cox analysis was used to explore the efficacy factors. RESULTS: A total of 86 (43.0%) patients developed TFA. Logistic regression analysis showed that Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG PS), pleural effusion and lactic dehydrogenase (LDH) were factors influencing TFA (P<0.05). Compared with normal thyroid function group, the median progression-free survival (PFS) of patients in the TFA group was significantly longer (19.0 months vs 6.3 months, P<0.001), and the objective response rate (ORR) (65.1% vs 28.9%, P=0.020) and disease control rate (DCR) (100.0% vs 92.1%, P=0.020) of the TFA group were better than those of the normal thyroid function group. Cox regression analysis showed that ECOG PS, LDH, cytokeratin 19 fragment (CYFRA21-1) and TFA were factors influencing prognosis (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS ECOG PS, pleural effusion and LDH may be risk factors affecting the occurrence of TFA and TFA may be a predictor of the efficacy of immunotherapy. Patients with advanced NSCLC who have TFA after immunotherapy may obtain better efficacy.
Humans ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/therapy* ; Retrospective Studies ; Thyroid Gland ; Lung Neoplasms/therapy* ; Immunotherapy/adverse effects* ; Pleural Effusion

BACKGROUND: Malignant pleural effusion is one of the common clinical manifestations of patients with lung adenocarcinoma. Patients with pleural effusion at the initial diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma usually indicate poor prognosis. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations mainly occur in patients with lung adenocarcinoma. Patients with different mutant subtypes have different prognosis. The clinical characteristics and prognostic factors of patients with EGFR mutated lung adenocarcinoma of different molecular subtypes combined with pleural effusion at initial diagnosis are still unclear. This study was designed to explore the clinical characteristics and prognostic factors of these patients in order to provide management recommendations for them. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of the clinical characteristics, treatment, outcomes and progression-free survival (PFS) of first-line treatment in patients with EGFR mutated lung adenocarcinoma combined with pleural effusion at initial diagnosis admitted to Department of Medical Oncology and Radiation Sickness, Peking University Third Hospital from January 2012 to June 2021 was performed. Pearson's chi-square test or Fisher's exact test were performed for comparison between groups. Kaplan-Meier method was performed for survival analysis and Cox proportional risk regression model was performed for multivariate analysis. RESULTS: 76 patients met the inclusion criteria in this study. The incidences of EGFR classical mutations 19del, 21L858R and non-classical mutations were 46.0%, 38.2% and 15.8%, respectively among these patients. There was no significant difference between the three mutations in terms of gender, age, presence of dyspnea at presentation, whether other distant metastases were combined, site of pleural effusion, volume of pleural effusion, presence of other combined effusions, tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage, presence of other gene mutations, and treatment of pleural effusion (P>0.05). In patients with EGFR classical mutations 19del or 21L858R or non-classical mutations subtype, the proportion of chemotherapy in first-line regimens were 17.1%, 20.7% and 58.3%, respectively (P=0.001); and first-line disease control rates were 94.3%, 75.9% and 50%, respectively (P=0.003); pleural effusion control rates were 94.3%, 79.3% and 66.7%, respectively (P=0.04); PFS were 287 d, 327 d and 55 d, respectively (P=0.001). Univariate analysis showed that EGFR mutation subtype, control of pleural effusion, first-line treatment agents, and first-line treatment efficacy were significantly associated with PFS (P<0.05). Cox multifactorial analysis showed that only EGFR mutation subtype and first-line treatment efficacy were independent prognostic factors for PFS (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS PFS was significantly better for classical mutations than for non-classical mutations in patients with EGFR mutated lung adenocarcinoma combined with pleural effusion at initial diagnosis. Improving the efficacy of first-line therapy is the key to improve the prognosis of these patients.
Adenocarcinoma of Lung/genetics* ; ErbB Receptors/genetics* ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms/pathology* ; Mutation ; Pleural Effusion/complications* ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies

OBJECTIVES: The advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with pleural effusion have no opportunity for surgery treatment. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are the first-line drugs for these patients with EGFR-sensitive mutation. However, the disease progression and drug update during or after treatment of EGFR-TKIs bring more challenges and puzzles to clinical diagnosis and treatment, which inevitably requires archived pleural cell samples for EGFR re-examination or comparative study. Understanding the DNA quality of archived pleural fluid samples and effectively using archival data of pleural fluid cells are of great significance for tracing the origin of cases and basic medical research. This study aims to evaluate the consistency of EGFR mutant gene expression between the 2 methods, and to explore a reliable way for preserving cytological data and making full use of cytological archival data via cell HE staining smear and cell paraffin section. METHODS: A total of 57 pleural fluid cytology cases in the Department of Pathology of China Aerospace Center Hospital from October 2014 to April 2021 were selected. Tumor cells were detected by cell HE staining smears and immunohistochemical staining for TTF-1 and Napsin A in the paired cell paraffin sections. There were more than 200 tumor cells in cell HE staining smear and the proportion of tumor cells were ≥70% in matched cell paraffin sections. Patients with 2 cell smears (one for cell data retention and the other for DNA extraction) were selected as the research subjects, and 57 pleural fluid samples were enrolled. EGFR gene mutation was detected by amplification refractory mutation system-polymerase chain reaction in 57 paired cell HE staining smears and cell paraffin sections. DNA concentration was 2 ng/μL. Cell HE smear was amplified side-by-side with DNA samples from paired cell paraffin sections. Result determination was according to the requirements of the reagent instructions. The external control cycle threshold (Ct) value of the No. 8 well of the samples to be tested was between 13 and 21, which was considered as successful and reliable samples. When the Ct value of EGFR gene mutation was <26, it was considered as positive; when the Ct value was between 26 and 29, it was critical positive; when the Ct value was equal or more than 29, it was negative. ΔCt value was the difference between mutant Ct value and externally controlled Ct value. The smaller the ΔCt value was, the better the quality of DNA of the detected sample was. RESULTS: Among the 57 pleural effusion samples, 42 patients were hospitalized with pleural effusion as the first symptom, accounting for 73.7% (42/57). EGFR mutation was detected in 37 samples [64.9% (37/57)]. The mutation rate for 19del was 37.8% (14/37) while for L858R was 48.6% (18/37). Females were 56.7% (21/37) of mutation cases. The mutation consistency rate of cell HE staining smear and matched cell paraffin sections was 100%. The ΔCt values of cell HE staining smears were less than those of matched cell paraffin sections. The mutation Ct values of 37 cytological samples were statistically analyzed according to the preservation periods of the years of 2014-2015, 2016-2017, 2018-2019, and 2020-2021. There were significant differences in cell paraffin section in the years of 2014-2015 and 2016-2017 compared with the years of 2018-2019 and 2020-2021, while no significant differences were found in cell HE staining smear. Statistical analysis of externally controlled Ct values of 57 cytological samples showed that there were significant differences between cell HE staining smears and cell paraffin section in the years of 2014-2015 and 2016-2017, compared with the years of 2018-2019 and 2020-2021. The mutational Ct values of 37 paired cell blocks and smears were all <26, and the externally controlled Ct values of 57 paired cell paraffin sections and HE staining smears were all between 13 and 21. CONCLUSIONS The DNA quality of cell HE smears and matched cell paraffin section met the qualified requirements. Two methods possess show an excellent consistency in detecting EGFR mutation in NSCLC pleural fluid samples. The DNA quality of cell HE staining smear is better than that of cell paraffin sections, so cell HE staining smear can be used as important supplement of the gene test source. It should be noted that the limitation of cell HE staining smears is non-reproducibility, so multiple smears of pleural fluid are recommended to be prepared for multiple tests.
Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/drug therapy* ; DNA Mutational Analysis/methods* ; ErbB Receptors/genetics* ; Female ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms/drug therapy* ; Male ; Mutation ; Paraffin/therapeutic use* ; Pleural Effusion/genetics* ; Protein Kinase Inhibitors/therapeutic use* ; Staining and Labeling

Background: The etiology of pleural effusion remains unclear in nearly 20% of cases. One way to diagnose malignancy is by doing pleural fluid cytology. There are factors that influence the yield of pleural fluid cytology and one of them is appropriate and timely fixation of samples. Currently, there is no local consensus regarding the timing with which the specimen should be fixed. Objective: The study aims to compare the yield of malignancy between early fixation versus usual fixation of pleural fluid samples, meaning there is no set time for fixation to be done. Methodology: The study employed a prospective cross-sectional research design. All patients with pleural effusion who fulfilled the criteria set by the study were included. Two sets of pleural fluid samples were collected amounting to 20cc each. First sample was assigned as Bottle #1 and placed immediately with fixative while the second sample was assigned as Bottle #2. Bottle #2 underwent routine fixation which follows no fixed or standard time of fixation. The time difference between the fixation of two sample groups greatly varied with Bottle #1 fixed immediately right after collection while Bottle#2 depends on the time it will be processed by the laboratory personnel. Both samples were submitted for cell block and cell cytology reading. Results: Characteristics of the 55 patients included in the study showed age group range from 41 to 65 years of age, with 27 male and 28 female patients. Only one third had history of smoking. There were 21.82% who had family history of cancer and with and suspicious mass on chest radiograph. Out of 55 patients, 29 patients had history of previous diagnosis of cancer, 23 had recurrent pleural effusion, and 28 had chest radiograph with suspicious nodules. Based on gross appearance, there were 20 serous and 21 sanguineous pleural fluid noted. Mean cell count was high (1,115.50 ± 741.02) with lymphocytic predominance (82.56 ± 24.46). Elevated protein concentration (5,388.25 ± 8,230.46) and LDH (484.17 ± 248.72) were noted. Glucose (8.78 ± 6.68 mmol/L) was low. There were 21 patients who had high WBC, 24 with high protein and 16 with elevated LDH. There were 3 patients who were positive for AFB and none for KOH. Comparative analysis showed that the pleural fluid samples assigned to the routinely fixed group which were handed to the nurse after thoracentesis, then forwarded to the laboratory through a ward laboratory aide or patient watcherfor fixation with with 95% alcoholby thelaboratory personnel significantly had a longer duration of 406.62 minutes as compared to immediately fixed at 12.27 minutes (P<0.01). For diagnosis of malignancy, significantly more cases were diagnosed in the immediately fixed group with 36.36% cases versus 18.18% (p=0.016). Conclusion Among patients with suspected malignant pleural effusions, early fixation of pleural fluid samples resulted in higher histopathology yields as compared to those fixed after going through the routine fixation.
Pleural Effusion, Malignant

Humans ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/genetics* ; Lung Neoplasms/genetics* ; Pleural Effusion, Malignant ; Consensus ; China