Drug-induced pleural disease

Abstract

SummaryDrug-induced pleural disease, while less common than drug-induced parenchymal lung disease, should be considered in anyone with unexplained pleural abnormality. Drug-induced pleural disease may manifest as pleural effusion with or without pleural eosinophilia, pleuritis, and pleural fibrosis, and may accompany drug-induced parenchymal lung toxicity. Other more serious conditions such as malignancy and infection should be ruled out before attributing pleural disease to drug toxicity. In this review, we discussed the drugs more commonly associated with pleural toxicity but clinicians should remain vigilant to the possibility that any drug is potentially capable of causing pleuroparenchymal lung toxicity.