Pleural effusions in children from Southern Brazil.

Parapneumonic pleural effusions (PPE) are a relatively common (5-40%) complication of paediatric pneumonia. However, in clinical practice the majority of the effusions are small and do not need any further investigation or specific treatment apart from antibiotic therapy. A small number require drainage or surgical intervention. Rarely, significant effusions are associated with non-bacterial pneumonia in the paediatric population. Pleural tuberculosis in our hospital is the second highest cause of pleural effusions related to the high incidence of TB in our city. In the last 3 years we have had around 50 cases of pleural TB in children.