[Possibilities for ultrasonic diagnosis of pleura pathology in patients with pleural exudate].

The authors have analyzed results of thoracovideoscopy in 45 patients with the syndrome of pleural exudate, 17 of them had undergone the ultrasonic examination of the pleural cavity before thoracoscopy. The examination has revealed high sensibility of the ultrasonic method in the diagnosis of fragmentations of pleural exudate and pathology of the pleural leaves. The endoscopic and echographic classification of the pleural exudate is given depending on the fragmentation degree. The authors consider that echography of the pleural cavity as a noninvasive and highly informative method should be included in the first rank in making an algorithm of clinico-diagnostic measures for patients with exudative pleuritis.