Management of postoperative chylothorax in a patient with carcinoma of thyroid and lymphadenopathy--a case report

Chylothorax is a rare but serious complication following neck dissection with an incidence of 0.5%-2%. Because of the rarity of chylothorax, surgeons are unfamiliar with its early signs which allow a prompt diagnosis and effective management. Most cases reported in the literature are associated with a concurrent external chyle leakage, occurring either during or after surgery. We report a case of chylothorax without concurrent external chyle leakage, which occurred following neck dissection and mediastinal lymphadenopathy, for thyroid cancer.