Chylothorax, the accumulation of chyle in the pleural space, is a relatively rare cause of pleural effusion in children. It can cause significant respiratory morbidity, as well as lead to malnutrition and immunodeficiency. Thus, a chylothorax requires timely diagnosis and treatment. This review will first discuss the anatomy and physiology of the lymphatic system and discuss various causes that...

Chylothorax due to goiter is an exceptional compressive complication; compressive goiter usually causes narrowing of the trachea and compression of the esophagus or jugular vein. Because of anatomical relationship, right-side chylothorax is caused by a very large and low-lying goiter. In those cases usually the surgical approach is a sternotomy instead of transcervical thyroidectomy, that is as...

Chylothorax is defined as an accumulation of chylecontaining lymphatic fluid within the pleural space. Most adult chylothoraces are related to surgery or malignancy. Spontaneous idiopathic chylothorax in adults is an extremely rare occurrence with very few reported cases. We present the first described case of spontaneous metachronous chylothorax presenting as a neck lump in a 48-year-old Cauca...

Co-existence of chylothorax and chyloabdomen is a rare clinical entity. Apart from surgery and extra-surgical trauma, malignancies, liver cirrhosis, nephrotic syndrome, thrombosis in the superior vena cava and acute pancreatitis play roles in the etiology. The case presented in this article was a 35-year-old woman, and the chronic infectious pathology in the cytology, plus the other supportive ...

Chylothorax is an unusual cause of pleural effusion, typically caused by trauma or malignancy. Waldenstrom's macroglobulinaemia (WM) is a clinicopathological entity demonstrating lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma in the bone marrow with an IgM monoclonal gammopathy in the blood. Recurrent chylous effusions are often resistant to conservative treatment and may require surgical intervention. We present ...

Chylous ascites and chylothorax are rare clinical entities and usually caused by neoplasms, particularly lymphomas, liver cirrhosis, superior vena cava thrombosis, nephrotic syndrome, and some cardiac events such as dilated cardiomyopathy or right heart failure. Constrictive pericarditis is an extremely rare cause of this clinical state. We report a 41-year-old male patient undergoing haemodial...

A 4-year-old male Japanese Shiba Inu presented with recurrent chylothorax. The thoracic duct was successfully imaged using computed tomography after the injection of an iodine contrast agent into the subcutaneous tissue surrounding the anus. The thoracic duct was successfully ligated and pericardectomy performed via an open thoracotomy. Pleural effusion improved but relapsed a week after the su...

OBJECTIVES Chylothorax is an infrequent but serious complication after thoracic surgery. Optimal management is still controversial. Surgical re-interventions are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. DESIGN During a 2-year period, 3 patients developed chylothorax after oesophagectomy. This was treated conservatively, following our departmental protocol. RESULTS Conservative m...

Received 10 June 2015 Accepted 12 August 2015 Online 31 August 2015 Print 31 August 2015 Chylothorax is a relatively rare clinical entity caused by injury or obstruction of the thoracic duct or its tributaries leading to accumulation of chyle in the pleural cavity. It is characterized by a high concentration of neutral fat and fatty acids in the pleural fluid. Bilateral chylothorax is even more...

A 70-year-old man with T1N3M1 stage IV squamous cell carcinoma in the right upper lobe of the lung developed chylothorax and chylopericardium as rare simultaneous complications. Intravenous hyperalimentation, repeated pleurodesis, and ligation of the thoracic duct were all ineffective. A pleuroperitoneal shunt was inserted into the right pleural cavity from the fifth intercostal space, and a pe...