XXXX in Meigs' Syndrome-Transudate or Exudate?: Systematic Review of the Literature.

@entity1 @entity1143 @entity18711 @entity5
Although @entity18711 is regarded as a well-defined entity, contradictory data on pleural fluid characteristics have been presented, with some papers classifying it as a transudate, whereas others stating that it is an exudate.The aims of the study were: (1) to evaluate pleural fluid characteristics in @entity1 with @entity18711 and (2) to analyze the prevalence of transudative and exudative @entity1143 in relation to the applied definition of the syndrome.We performed a search through medical databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, SCOPUS, and GOOGLE SCHOLAR) to identify papers on @entity18711 published between 1940 and 2013. Two authors independently reviewed each paper searching for prespecified data: (1) signs and symptoms, (2) @entity5 characteristics, (3) clinical and laboratory data on ascites, (4) clinical, radiological, and laboratory data on pleural fluid, (5) clinical course after @entity5 removal. All case reports were reclassified according to a new unequivocal classification of @entity18711 -related entities.A total of 653 papers were initially identified, and 454 articles reporting 541 @entity1 were included in the final analysis. After reclassification according to our case definitions, there were 196, 113, and 108 @entity1 defined as classic @entity18711 , nonclassic @entity18711 , and @entity18711 , respectively. Significantly more @entity1 presented with right-sided than left-sided and bilateral @entity1143 (P<0.001). Median volume of withdrawn pleural fluid was 2950 (1500-6000) mL. The classification of @entity1143 with the use of Light's criteria was possible in only 7 @entity1 . In 6 of these @entity1 @entity1143 met the criteria for an exudate. When the protein concentration > 3.0g/dL was applied as a criterion of pleural exudate, 88.8% (80/90) of effusions were classified as exudates. Increasing the cut-off level to 3.5g/dL resulted in only a modest decrease in the percentage of exudative effusions (81%, 73/90).Surprisingly few reports on @entity18711 present data reliably defining the character of @entity1143 . The available data indicate, however, that the majority of @entity1143 in @entity1 with this entity are exudates. This finding may be a prerequisite for the verification of some earlier presented concepts.
