Treatment for a large amount of fluid in the left pleural cavity includes medication and surgery.
Pleural effusion is a condition in which the fluid in the pleural cavity is formed too quickly or absorbed too slowly, increasing the amount of fluid in the pleural cavity. Causes of pleural effusion include inflammatory infections, heart failure, tumors, hypoproteinemia, and more. Patients may have chest pain, cough, dyspnea and other symptoms.
1. Drug treatment: mainly according to the cause of the disease. If the massive pleural effusion is caused by tuberculosis, anti-tuberculosis drugs such as rifampicin and pyrazinamide should be applied as prescribed by doctor; if the massive pleural effusion is caused by pneumonia, antibiotic drugs such as ceftazidime and levofloxacin should be applied as prescribed by doctor.
2. Surgery: Patients with large pleural effusion are usually treated with surgery, and the most common surgical treatment is thoracic closed drainage, which drains excessive fluid, relieves compression symptoms and reduces the risk of infection. Patients may also undergo repeated pus extraction or closed drainage with intercostal cannulae, depending on their condition.
Patients should follow the doctor’s instructions, do not blindly treat themselves, in order to avoid delaying the condition or causing adverse reactions.