Malignant pleural effusion (MPE) occurs in 15% of all cancer patients and usually portends poor prognosis while also serving to limit the patient\'s quality of life. Palliation of symptoms has been the goal for the management of these effusions while keeping the patient\'s hospital stay to a minimum. Traditionally, this has been achieved by chest tube drainage followed by the instillation of sclerosing agents, such as talc, in the pleural space. A recent increase in evidence for the effectiveness and convenience of indwelling pleural catheters has changed the management of MPE, which is reflected in the guidelines released by the American Thoracic Society as well their European Counterpart (ERS/BTS). In this article, we aim to review the current management practices and guidelines for MPE.

OBJECTIVE: To fully assess the quality of the guidelines for the management of malignant pleural effusions (MPE) and ascites and reveal the heterogeneity of recommendations and possible reasons among guidelines.
METHODS: A systematic search was performed in the database to obtain guidelines for the management of MPE and ascites. The AGREE IIGtool was used to assess the quality of these guidelines. The Measurement Scale of Rate of Agreement (MSRA) was introduced to assess the scientific agreement of formulated recommendations for the management of MPE and ascites among guidelines, and evidence supporting these recommendations was extracted and analyzed.
RESULTS: Nine guidelines were identified. Only 4 guidelines scored more than 60% and are worth recommending. Recommendations were also heterogeneous among guidelines for the management of MPE, and the main reasons were the different emphases of the recommendations for the treatment of MPE, the contradictions in recommendations, and the unreasonably cited evidence for MPE.
CONCLUSIONS: The quality of the management guidelines for patients with MPE and malignant ascites was highly variable. Specific improvement of the factors leading to the heterogeneity of recommendations will be a reasonable and effective way for developers to upgrade the recommendations in the guidelines for MPE.

The management of recurrent pleural effusions remains a challenging issue for clinicians. Advances in management have led to increased use of indwelling tunneled pleural catheters (IPC) because of their effectiveness and ease of outpatient placement. However, with the increase in IPC placement there have also been increasing reports of complications, including infections. Currently there is minimal guidance in IPC-related management issues after placement.
Our objective was to formulate clinical consensus statements related to perioperative and long-term IPC catheter management based on a modified Delphi process from experts in pleural disease management.
Expert panel members used a modified Delphi process to reach consensus on common perioperative and long-term management options related to IPC use. Members were identified from multiple countries, specialties, and practice settings. A series of meetings and anonymous online surveys were completed. Responses were used to formulate consensus statements among panel experts, using a modified Delphi process. Consensus was defined a priori as greater than 80% agreement among panel constituents.
A total of 25 physicians participated in this project. The following topics were addressed during the process: definition of an IPC infection, management of IPC-related infectious complications, interventions to prevent IPC infections, IPC-related obstruction/malfunction management, assessment of IPC removal, and instructions regarding IPC management by patients and caregivers. Strong consensus was obtained on 36 statements. No consensus was obtained on 29 statements.
The management of recurrent pleural disease with IPC remains complex and challenging. This statement offers statements for care in numerous areas related to IPC management based on expert consensus and identifies areas that lack consensus. Further studies related to long-term management of IPC are warranted.