EXPLORING THE FREQUENCY OF PARAPNEUMONIC EFFUSION IN PNEUMONIA: A COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS

Abstract

OBJECTIVE

To determine the frequency of parapneumonic effusion in patients presenting with pneumonia.

METHODOLOGY

A descriptive cross-sectional study at Liaquat National Hospital, Karachi, enrolled 161 pneumonia patients (18–70 years) using non-probability consecutive sampling. Inclusion criteria required a clinical and radiological pneumonia diagnosis with a disease duration of one to three weeks, regardless of treatment status. Parapneumonic effusion was assessed via chest X-ray. Data were analyzed using SPSS 26, applying Chi-square tests with a 5% significance level.

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RESULTS

The mean age of the patients was 39.20 ± 12.61 years. Among the 161 cases, 60.9% were male, and 39.1% were female. Smoking was noted in (63.4%), hypertension (55.9%), and diabetes (31.1%) patients. Parapneumonic effusion was noted in 68.94% of patients.

CONCLUSION

The study showed a high prevalence of parapneumonic effusion among patients with pneumonia, especially older males, urban residents and the presence of chronic disease such as hypertension and diabetes. These findings here suggest that stratified approach and opportunistic case identification might be needed in at-risk populations, to prevent complications of the syndrome.