Evaluation of Clinical and Pathological Outcomes of Medical Thoracoscopy in Southern Iran: Six Years' Experience.

INTRODUCTION

Medical thoracoscopy (MT) is an important diagnostic and therapeutic procedure for pleural diseases, particularly unexplained exudative pleural effusions. Although widely used internationally, data describing MT outcomes from southern Iran remain limited.

MATERIAL AND

METHODS

This retrospective descriptive study evaluated 93 patients who underwent MT at a large tertiary referral hospital in southern Iran between 2017 and 2023. Data regarding patient characteristics, anesthesia methods, procedural details, complications, and pathological findings were collected and analyzed using descriptive statistics.

RESULTS

The study included 93 patients (59% male and 41% female) with a mean age of 60.7 ± 15.07 years. Conscious sedation was the most commonly used anesthesia method (72%). Pathological examination revealed malignant pleural involvement in 63 patients, including newly diagnosed primary lung malignancies and metastatic pleural disease. Thoracoscopic talc poudrage was performed in 17 patients with recurrent symptomatic pleural effusions. Non-specific inflammatory findings were identified in 27 patients, and three cases of granulomatous inflammation, including tuberculosis, were also observed. Complications occurred in 13 patients, mainly including chest pain, mild intraprocedural bleeding, and respiratory complications. Five patients died during hospitalization; however, none of these deaths were attributed to procedure-related complications.

CONCLUSION

In this study, MT was associated with a high proportion of definitive pathological diagnoses and a low frequency of severe procedure-related complications. These findings support the utility of MT in the evaluation of selected patients with complex pleural diseases, particularly unexplained exudative pleural effusions. Further studies focusing on patient selection, therapeutic outcomes, and long-term follow-up are warranted.