Comparison between OK-432 and Talc for pleurodesis in patients with persistent pulmonary air leak: a Japanese nationwide retrospective database study.

Objectives: OK-432 (Picibanil^®) and talc are used in patients with persistent pulmonary air leaks. However, it is unclear which of these two agents is more effective.

Methods: This retrospective study used data from the Japanese Diagnosis Procedure Combination inpatient database. Patients with pneumothorax who underwent chemical pleurodesis between July 2010 and March 2022 were included in this study. The patients were categorized into two groups: the OK-432 and talc groups. The primary outcome measure was treatment failure, defined as a composite of requirement for additional surgical procedures, bronchoscopic interventions, or chemical pleurodesis. The secondary outcome measures were in-hospital mortality, length of hospital stay, 30-day readmission, and incidence of interstitial lung diseases after hospitalization. To compare the outcomes between the groups, 1:4 propensity score matching was conducted.

Results: Among the 4179 eligible patients, 3551 and 628 patients underwent chemical pleurodesis using OK-432 and talc, respectively. Propensity score matching yielded 2508 and 627 patients who underwent chemical pleurodesis using OK-432 and talc within seven days of admission, respectively. The frequency of treatment failure in the talc group (37.5% vs. 31.4%; P = 0.006) was lower than that in the OK-432 group with no significant differences in other outcomes.

Conclusions: Medical professionals can consider talc as the initial pleurodesis agent for patients with persistent air leaks.