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Chestultrasonography versus computed tomography in the diagnosis of pleural effusion (Menoufia experience)

Background Pleural effusion is a common clinical problem and can arise from many diseases. Several imaging methods such as chest radiograph, ultrasonography (US), and computed tomography (CT) scan are being used to diagnose and detect the etiology of pleural effusion. Objective The aim of this work was to compare imaging findings of chest US and CT and the role of chest US in diagnosis of pleural effusion. Patients and methods This observational prospective cohort study was done on 70 patients with pleural effusion of determined etiology admitted to the Chest Department, Menoufia University Hospital, in the period between August 2018 and June 2019. We compared between chest US and CT in different types of pleural effusion. Results This study showed that pleural septations were detected by US more than CT, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). There was a significant statistical difference in detection of pleural thickening by US over CT (P<0.005). It showed a highly significant statistical difference in the detection of the site of pleural thickening and nodules by US, especially on diaphragmatic pleura (P<0.001). There was also a highly significant statistical difference in the detection of pleural nodules by US over CT (P<0.001). There was a significant difference in the detection of parenchymal lesions by US and CT, where US could see collapse more than CT (P<0.05), but CT detected consolidation patches more than US. Conclusion Chest US finding has higher diagnostic accuracy than chest CT finding in the diagnosis of pleural effusion and more sensitive in detection of pleural septations, diaphragmatic pleural nodules, and thickening.