The pleura
The pleura is a large, thin sheet of tissue that wraps the outside of your lungs and lines the inside of your chest. Between its two layers is a very thin space, normally holding a little fluid that lets the layers glide past each other as you breathe.
Disorders
| Disorder | What happens | Most common cause |
|---|---|---|
| Pleurisy | the pleura is inflamed, causing sharp pain when you breathe | a viral infection |
| Pleural effusion | excess fluid in the pleural space | congestive heart failure |
| Pneumothorax | air or gas builds up in the space | lung diseases such as COPD, tuberculosis and acute lung injury |
| Hemothorax | blood builds up in the space | chest injury |
Many other conditions can cause pleural problems.
Treatment
Treatment removes the fluid, air or blood from the pleural space, relieves symptoms, and treats the underlying condition.
Sources
Based on "Pleural Disorders," MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine, drawing on the NIH National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; a work of the United States government in the public domain.
LanguagesEnglish
Licence: CC0 1.0 (public domain) · Adapted from medlineplus.gov
1
0
0
0
Comments
