ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Fifty years since its inception, Light's criteria have aided in classifying pleural effusions (PEs) as exudates if 1 or more criteria are met. Thoracic ultrasound (US) emerges as a non-invasive technique for point of care use especially if pleural procedures are contemplated. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to develop a score based on radiological and US features that could separate exudates from transudates without serum and pleural fluid biochemical tests necessary for Light's criteria. METHODS: A prospective review of consecutive patients with PE who underwent thoracocentesis was performed. CXRs were evaluated for laterality followed by US for echogenicity, pleural nodularity, thickening and septations. PE was classified as exudate or transudate according to Light's criteria and corroborated with albumin gradient. A score combining radiological and US features was developed. RESULTS: We recruited 201 patients with PE requiring thoracocentesis. Mean age was 64 years, 51% were females, 164 (81.6%) were exudates, and 37 (18.4%) were transudates. Assigning 1-point for Diaphragmatic nodularity, Unilateral, Echogenicity, Pleural Thickening and Septations, DUETS ranged from 1 to 5. DUETS ≥2 indicated high likelihood for exudate (PPV 98.8%, NPV 100%) with 1% misclassification versus 6.9% using Light's criteria (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: DUETS separated exudates from transudates with good accuracy, and could obviate paired serum and pleural fluid tests necessary for Light's criteria computation. Our study reflected real world practice where DUETS performed better than Light's criteria for PE that arose from more than one disease processes, and in the evaluation of patients with PE who have received diuretics.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Vaccine-preventable viral infections are associated with increased risk of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients. Current guidelines recommend routine screening and vaccination of all patients before solid organ transplantation. We studied rates of immunity against vaccine-preventable viruses in liver transplantation (LT) recipients. METHODS: We retrospectively studied consecutive adult patients who underwent first deceased donor LT at a single center between August 2008 and October 2017. Viruses studied were hepatitis A (HAV), hepatitis B (HBV), varicella zoster virus (VZV), measles, and mumps. Hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs) <10 IU/mL in HBV surface antigen-negative patients and negative IgG to other viruses was regarded as absent immunity. RESULTS: Five hundred and fifty-five patients underwent LT (72.4% male; median age, 55.0 y). Percentages of patients who lacked immunity to vaccine-preventable infections were HAV (31.8%), HBV (63.8%), measles (1.4%), mumps (6.6%), and VZV (3.8%). Age was positively associated with immunity (from either past exposure or vaccination) against most viruses, including HAV, measles, mumps, and VZV (P < 0.05 for all). In contrast, older age was marginally associated with anti-HBs <10 IU/mL (P = 0.046). No significant changes in immunity rates were observed during the study period. CONCLUSIONS: A substantial number of patients undergoing LT are not immune to vaccine-preventable viruses at the time of assessment. This presents an opportunity for pre-LT vaccination and in particular younger patients may need to be targeted.
