Open pleural biopsy

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Incision for pleural tissue biopsy

Lungs

Pleural cavity

An open pleural biopsy is a procedure to remove and examine the tissue that lines the inside of the chest. This tissue is called the pleura.

Biopsy - open pleura

An open pleural biopsy is done in the hospital using general anesthesia, which means you are asleep and do not feel pain during the surgery. A tube will be placed down your throat to help you breathe.

The surgeon will make a cut in the left or right side of the chest. A piece of tissue is taken from the chest area, and sent to a laboratory for examination. After surgery, the wound is closed with stitches.

You will be asked not to eat or drink for 8 hours before the test.

You will be asleep during the procedure. There will be some tenderness and pain where the surgical cut is located. You may have a sore throat after the test due to the breathing tube.

This procedure is used when the surgeon needs a larger piece of tissue than that which can be removed with a pleural needle biopsy.

It is also performed when there are no body fluids in the pleura or when a direct view of the pleura and the lungs is necessary.

This procedure may also be done to examine a metastatic pleural tumor.

Review Date: 10/16/2006
Reviewed By: J.A. Lee, M.D., Division of Surgery, UCSF, San Francisco, CA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.