Flushing chest drains to improve outcomes in pleural infections

Is this trial a fit for you?

A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.

What this trial studies

This study evaluates the impact of regular saline flushing of chest drains in patients with complicated parapneumonic effusions and empyemas. It aims to determine whether this practice can reduce the time to chest tube removal, decrease total hospitalization duration, and improve imaging results and the need for further interventions. The study addresses a gap in existing research, as there have been no randomized controlled trials assessing the effectiveness of this flushing technique in managing pleural space infections. Participants will receive saline flushes every six hours to maintain tube patency and optimize drainage.

Why it matters

Who can join: the full rules

Inclusion Criteria:

* Patients with complicated parapneumonic pleural effusion and empyema requiring chest tube placement as standard of care for inpatient management of their pleural space infection with or without intrapleural tissue plasminogen activator and deoxyribonuclease therapy
* Age \> 18 years old.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Patients who have surgical tubes that can't accommodate a three-way stopcock.
* Study subject has any disease or condition that interferes with the safe completion of the study.
* Inability to provide informed consent.
* Inability to undergo a chest X-ray.
* If the managing clinician believes the chest tube will be placed for less than 24 hours.
* Patients with an indwelling pleural catheter (IPC)

Where it's running

• Henry Ford
  Sterling Heights, Michigan, United States Recruiting
• Creighton University
  Omaha, Nebraska, United States Recruiting
• Mount Sinai
  New York, New York, United States Recruiting
• Vanderbilt University Medical Center
  Nashville, Tennessee, United States Recruiting
• Virginia Commonwealth University
  Richmond, Virginia, United States Recruiting

Study contacts

• Study coordinator: Samira Shojaee, MD, MPH
• Email: samira.shojaee@vumc.org
• Phone: 615-322-2386

Similar studies

Other studies for the same condition or treatment. Recruiting studies are listed first.

• VATS vs Intrapleural Enzymatic Therapy for Empyema in Adults

  This trial tests whether VATS surgery or intrapleural enzymatic therapy helps adults with pleural infection (empyema) when standard treatment hasn’t worked.

  Recruiting Phase 4 Academisch Medisch Centrum - Universiteit van Amsterdam (AMC-UvA) · Amsterdam · NCT07886541

• Pleural infection: comparing alteplase with DNase vs alteplase with Tyloxapol

  This study tests whether adding DNase versus Tyloxapol to intrapleural alteplase helps clear pleural infection more effectively.

  Recruiting National University of Malaysia · Cheras, Kuala Lumpur · NCT07432373

• Once-daily intrapleural enzyme treatment for complicated pleural infections

  This will see if giving tPA and DNase once a day through a chest tube works as well as giving them twice a day for people with complicated pleural infections.

  Recruiting at 11 sites Phase 4 University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill · Little Rock, Arkansas and 10 other locations · NCT07095361

• Adding saline irrigation to standard treatment for pleural infections

  This study is testing if adding saline irrigation through a chest tube to standard treatment can help people with pleural infections get better faster and spend less time in the hospital.

  Recruiting Mayo Clinic · Rochester, Minnesota · NCT06434324

• Using sodium bicarbonate to treat complex pleural effusion

  This study is testing if using sodium bicarbonate instead of saline for washing out fluid in the lungs can help adults with complicated pleural effusion recover better and avoid surgery.

  Recruiting First Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University · Ningbo, Zhejiang · NCT06734481

• Voriconazole pleural lavage for fungal empyema

  This trial will try washing the infected pleural space with voriconazole in people of any age who have confirmed fungal empyema and are already receiving systemic antifungal therapy.

  Recruiting University of Health Sciences Lahore · Lahore, Punjab Province · NCT07337993

How to take part

1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
2. Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
3. Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.