Diagostic values of carcinoembryonic antigen and C-reactive protein in differentiate between tuberculosis and malignant pleural effusion

Objective To discuss the value of carcinoembryonic antigen(CEA) and C reactive protein(CRP) in differential diagnosis of malignant pleural effusion.Methods The levels of CEA and CRP in 34 cases of neoplastic pleural effusion and 86 cases of tuberculous pleural effusion were detected and compared.Results CEA level and positive rate in pleural effusion group was significantly higher than that of malignant pleural effusion group,while the CRP level and positive rate in pleural effusion group was higher than that of tuberculosis of malignant pleural effusion group,differences were statistically significant(P 0.01),and CEA 8 μg/L in the diagnosis of malignant pleural effusion sensitivity was 55.88%,specificity was 100.00%,while the CRP 6 mg/L for diagnosis of tuberculous pleural effusion sensitivity was 78.18%,specificity was 87.18%.Conclusion CRP and CEA have important value in differential diagnosis of neoplastic pleural effusion and tuberculous pleural effusion.