Chylothorax is a rare but serious postoperative condition with a high rate of morbidity that may lead to death of children with congenital heart disease. Here we reviewed nine consecutive cases with chylothorax in infants and children following cardiac surgery from March 2002 to February 2003. Somatostatin was added to conservative treatment protocol to increase effectiveness of therapy in all ...

Chylothorax is defined as the accumulation of lymphatic fluid or chyle in the pleural space. Chylothorax treatment is composed of conservative; pleural drainage, termination of enteral feeding, total parenteral nutrition and supplementation with medium- chain triglycerides and surgical therapies; ductus thoracicus ligation, pleuroperitoneal shunts or pleuredesis. Nowadays, for cases among which...

Chylothorax is a possible complication of intrathoracic surgery. The diagnosis of postoperative chylothorax is easy; however, the treatment can cause problems of management because of the lack of consensus. In children, the most common causes of postoperative chylothorax are the cures for congenital heart diseases. We report the case of a two-year-old child, presenting with a chylothorax follow...

Although pleural effusion is a rare cause of respiratory distress in newborns, being familiar with this disease is very important because of the generally favorable prognosis when the diagnosis is done early and therapy is prompt. We report a case of a full-term baby diagnosed with respiratory distress after 1 week of life. An X-ray of his chest showed a left pleural effusion. Moreover, a thora...

Background Chylothorax is defined as abnormal accumulation of lymphatic fluid in the pleural space secondary to leakage from thoracic duct or one of its main tributaries. Congenital idiopathic chylothorax is the most common form of pleural effusion in neonates. Conservative therapy is the mainstay of treatment. An alternative...

Congenital chylothorax is an uncommon cause of respiratory distress and a life-threatening condition in newborns. It is identified by abnormal accumulation of chyle in the pleural space. Herein, we report a male infant who was born by a successful vaginal delivery. After the first three days of life, he had feeding difficulties and cyanotic episodes during breastfeeding. On admission, physical ...

BACKGROUND Chylothorax after congenital heart surgery (CHD) is a potentially challenging complication. The purpose of this study was to review our experience with the management of chylothorax following congenital heart surgery. METHODS Between September 1997 and August 2006, of 1341 pediatric patients undergoing correction of congenital heart disease in our institution, 18 (1.3%) developed c...

From our experience in 16 patients with persistent chylothorax from fistulas of the thoracic duct or its tributaries, we conclude that no standard treatment is uniformly successful and multimodality therapy should be considered. In selected patients, an anastomosis between ectatic lymphatics or hyperplastic lymph nodes and an adjacent vein may be attempted. Chylothorax from "leakage" of the tho...

PURPOSE Congenital and acquired chylothorax presents a unique management challenge in neonates and infants. A failure of conservative therapy requires surgical ligation to prevent continued fluid and protein losses. This article examines a 15-year experience with thoracoscopic ligation of the thoracic duct. PATIENTS AND METHODS From June 1999 to December 2013, 21 patients presented with chylo...

chylothorax in adult occurs most commonly in the wake of cardiac and thoracic procedures. injuries to the  common thoracic duct in the thorax or its branches in the mediastinum, injuries to the thymus tissues, dissection of the superior vena cava or ascending aorta, dissection of the aortic arch, disruption of the accessory lymphatics in the left or right thorax, and increased pressure in the s...