Pigtail Catheter: a Less Invasive Option for Pleural Drainage of Recurrent Hepatic Hydrothorax

Inclusion Criteria: * Patients with cirrhotic liver and recurrent pleural effusion. * Pleural fluid should be transudate according to Light's criteria: * Pleural fluid-to-serum protein ratio less than 0.5 * Pleural fluid lactic dehydrogenase (LDH) less than 200 IU * Pleural fluid-to-serum LDH ratio and pleural fluid-to-high normal serum LDH ratio less than 0.6 Exclusion Criteria: * Diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma or other neoplasm able to shorten life expectancy. * Congestive heart failure. * Recent (i.e. within the previous 2 weeks) episode of digestive hemorrhage. * Exudative pleural effusion. * Ascitic fluid or pleural fluid infection * Platelet count below 50,000 * Prothrombin activity below 50%