Pleural diseases can occur due to numerous pathological conditions. The increasing prevalence of etiologic causes and aging population worldwide will make pleural diseases a growing problem in the coming years. As a result of this increase, the need for diagnostic investigations is also increasing. In recent years, the use of image-guided needle biopsies under ultrasound (US) or computed tomography (CT) and the increasing use of medical thoracoscopy (MT) have significantly increased the accuracy of diagnosis of pleural disease. There is not yet a generally accepted algorithm for invasive diagnosis of pleural disease, widely used in clinics, that determines which method should be used in which patient. It would be necessary and valuable to develop an algorithm based on imaging findings in particular to improve the diagnostic accuracy, safety, and cost of the procedure. The investigators aimed to test the algorithm in an interventional study to increase the level of evidence in this study.
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The efficacy of pleural biopsy methods for the diagnosis of pleural diseases.
Timeframe: 60 months