[Pleural procedures in patients treated by platelet aggregation inhibitors: An opinion survey].

BACKGROUND: When pleural procedures (thoracocentesis, blind pleural biopsies and chest tube insertion) are required in patients taking long-term platelet aggregation inhibitors, the risk of bleeding must be balanced against the risk of arterial thrombosis. Currently, the bleeding risk of pleural procedures is poorly understood.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the survey was to gather the opinion of respiratory physicians regarding the bleeding risk of pleural procedures in patients taking platelet aggregation inhibitors.

METHODS: We emailed a standardized questionnaire designed by the French National Authority for Health to 2697 French respiratory physicians.

RESULTS: One hundred and eighty-eight of the 2697 questionnaires were returned (response rate: 7 %). The respiratory physicians declared that they performed an average of 8 pleural procedures per month. One hundred and seventy-five responders (95 %) practised pleural procedures in patients receiving platelet aggregation inhibitors; 68 of them (39 %) reported experiencing haemorrhagic complications. The bleeding risk associated with thoracentesis and chest tube insertion was considered minor by 97.8 and 65 % of responders respectively, whereas it was considered major for blind pleural biopsies by 73.4 %. Respiratory physicians were more reticent about performing pleural procedures in patients treated with clopidogrel than in those taking aspirin.

CONCLUSION: This study provides an overview of how respiratory physicians perceive the bleeding risk associated with pleural procedures in patients taking platelet aggregation inhibitors.