RESUMEN
PURPOSE: Pleural effusions are recognised complications of mycoplasmal, tuberculous, and parapneumonic infections. Tuberculosis is still a common infectious disease in Korea, but the difficulty is that this disease is initially difficult to discriminat from common community-acquired pneumonia. It makes immediate diagnosis and proper treatment difficult. We investigate the common characteristics of pleural fluid and blood in mycoplasmal and tuberculous pleural effusions. METHODS: A retrospective clinical study was performed with four different patients groups. A total of 70 patients with pleural effusions were included: 7 with tuberculous pleural effusions, 34 with mycoplasmal pleural effusions, 8 with malignant pleural effusions, and 21 with other infectious pleural effusions. RESULTS: Glucose and pH levels of pleural effusions in other infectious pleural effusions were significantly lower than in the other groups. (P< 0.01) Proportions of lymphocytes of pleural effusions in tuberculous pleural effusions were significantly higher than in the other groups. (P< 0.01) ADA levels of pleural effusions were not statistically different in the four disease groups. (P=0.303) Protein levels of blood in mycoplasmal pleural effusions were significantly lower than in the other groups. (P< 0.05) Albumin levels of blood in other infectious pleural effusions were significantly lower than in the other groups. (P< 0.05) LDH levels of blood in tuberculous pleural effusions were significantly higher than in the other groups. (P< 0.05) CONCLUSION: Our results show that ADA levels cannot be very valuable as diagnostic markers of tuberculous pleural effusions. More prospective and serial studies combined with PPD skin tests are required to prove correct and rapid diagnoses of tuberculous pleural effusions.
