North Bristol NHS Trust 1 article published in JoVE Medicine Local Anesthetic Thoracoscopy for Undiagnosed Pleural Effusion Uffe Bodtger1,2, José M. Porcel3, Rahul Bhatnagar4,5, Nick Maskell4,5, Mohammed Munavvar6,7, Casper Jensen1, Paul Frost Clementsen1,8, Daniel Bech Rasmussen1,2 1Respiratory Research Unit PLUZ, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Zealand University Hospital, 2Institute of Regional Health Research, University of Southern Denmark, 3Pleural Medicine Unit, Department of Internal Medicine, Hospital Universitari Arnau de Vilanova, IRBLleida, 4Respiratory Department, Southmead Hospital, North Bristol NHS Trust, 5Academic Respiratory Unit, University of Bristol, 6Lancashire Teaching Hospitals, 7University of Central Lancashire, 8Centre for HR and Education, Copenhagen Academy for Medical Education and Simulation Local anesthetic thoracoscopy (LAT) is essential for diagnosing recurrent, undiagnosed pleural effusion when a guideline-based workup fails to provide a specific cause. LAT can be performed as a day-case procedure by chest physicians. Here, we present a step-by-step approach for a successful and safe procedure.
