What does the “Serous” mean in Serous fluid (hydrothorax)?
Wow. Denisedds is actually somewhat incorrect for the first time I have ever seen. That’s OK – none of us are correct 100% of the time. There are no digestive fluids in the pulmonary cavity – not normally. Generally this means a fluid back up rather than an infectious, inflammatory or malignant condition. Disorders such as heart failure or renal failure or liver failure could cause serous pleural effusions. The differentiation is between serous fluids and exudative fluids. Exudates are fluids with a high content of protein and cellular debris which has escaped from blood vessels and has been deposited in tissues or on tissue surfaces – usually as a result of inflammation. We would have to know the entire medical history of this patient and see the pleural fluid laboratory report plus ideally look at the pleural fluid under a microscope – to make an educated guess. Why not ask the doctor who knows all of this personal information?
