We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.
To save content items to your account,
please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies.
If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account.
Find out more about saving content to .
To save content items to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org
is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings
on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part
of your Kindle email address below.
Find out more about saving to your Kindle.
Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations.
‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi.
‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.
The pleura is host to many diseases, some systemic, others spreading from the underlying lung. Lung carcinoma metastases are the commonest lesions seen by pathologists. The most frequent cause of pleural problems is an effusion, secondary to congestive cardiac failure. This chapter will consider normal pleural physiology, as well as benign and malignant processes.
The pleural space, separating the lung and chest wall, contains a small amount of liquid that lubricates the pleural surfaces during breathing (see Chapter 1). The volume of fluid in the pleural space is small, in the range of 0.2–0.5 ml. Normally, the protein and cellular content is low, with no inflammatory cells. The thin layer of liquid between the pleural surfaces has the important function of providing mechanical coupling between the chest wall and lung. For this connection to be effective, the volume of pleural liquid required for lubrication must be kept to a minimum. In addition, the colloid osmotic pressure must be low to keep this volume small. This fluid ensures instantaneous transmission of perpendicular forces between the two structures, and allows their sliding movement in response to shearing forces.
Recommend this
Email your librarian or administrator to recommend adding this to your organisation's collection.