ABSTRACT
Diseases of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract may cause either transudative or exudative pleural effusions. Transudative pleural effusions occur when the systemic factors influencing the formation and absorption of pleural fluid are altered so that pleural fluid accumulates. In the majority of the cases, the transudative pleural effusion is related causally with cirrhosis and ascites. Exudative pleural effusions related to GI diseases are usually secondary to acute or chronic diseases and conditions affecting pancreas, liver and biliary tract, esophagus, or hernias, or they represent a complication of abdominal surgery. A particular category of exudative pleural effusions is the metastatic invasion of pleura attributed to abdominal neoplasms. Table 1 shows the GI diseases associated with transudative, exudative, or malignant pleural effusions.
