NCT07184736

Comparing Active Versus Passive Aspiration in Therapeutic Thoracentesis: Efficacy, Procedure Time, and Patient Safety

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 60 (actual)
• Sponsor: Sheikh Zayed Federal Postgraduate Medical Institute · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

This single-blind randomized controlled trial (RCT) aims to compare the efficacy and safety of active manual aspiration versus passive gravity drainage during therapeutic thoracentesis for large symptomatic pleural effusions. A total of 60 eligible patients will be randomized into two equal groups. The active aspiration group will undergo fluid removal using manual syringe suction, while the passive aspiration group will undergo drainage via gravity. The primary outcomes of the study are the total procedure time and the volume of pleural fluid aspirated. Secondary outcomes include patient-reported pain (measured on a Numeric Rating Scale), patient-reported dyspnea (measured by the mMRC scale), the incidence of procedure-related cough, and the reason for procedure termination. The goal of this study is to determine which technique offers a better balance of efficiency and patient comfort.

Conditions

• Pleural Effusion

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
PROCEDURE	Active Manual Syringe Aspiration	For the Active Manual Syringe Aspiration, the operator manually withdraws pleural fluid using a syringe attached to a 3-way stopcock and transfusion set. The fluid is then expelled into a collection bag.
PROCEDURE	Passive Gravity Drainage	In Passive Gravity Drainage, after confirming proper needle placement with initial aspiration, the syringe is detached, and pleural fluid is allowed to drain passively by gravity through the transfusion set into a collection bag.

Timeline

• Start date: 2020-03-01
• Primary completion: 2022-03-01
• Completion: 2022-03-01
• First posted: 2025-09-22
• Last updated: 2025-09-22

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Pakistan