The Role of Thoracoscopy in Diagnosis and Treatment of Pleural Disease

Intrathoracic disease involving lungs and pleura encounteredfrequently and remains a challenging clinical problem.The definitive diagnosis of lung or pleural disease some timesremain unclear despite thoracocentesis, closed pleural biopsy,transthoracic needle aspiration or bronchoscopy. Recentadvances in endoscopic technique, video equipment anddevelopment of better instrumentation have contributed to theresurgence of thoracoscopy as a diagnostic and thoracoscopicmodality.