Medical Thoracoscopy – Minimally invasive diagnostic tool for a trained Pulmonologist

Even after extensive diagnostic evaluation of a patient with pleural effusion, the etiology often remains unclear. Pleural fluid studiesand blind pleural biopsy have their own limitations. It is in this context that pleuroscopy or thoracoscopy becomes an important investigation so that the pleural surface can be visualized and representative sample can easily be picked. The concept ofmedical thoracoscopy is a simplification of VATS, as it is done under conscious sedation through a single port by the chestphysicians. Here we report our experience with Medical Thoracoscopy at Institute of Chest Diseases, Calicut with review ofliterature.