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Bilateral chylothorax following neck dissection
1Department of Surgery, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Background:
Bilateral chylothorax, as a complication of neck dissection, is extremely rare, and was first described in 1907. Ten cases are reported in the literature.
Methods:
This presentation illustrates an additional case of bilateral chylothorax occurring after neck dissection. Anatomic and physiologic considerations are presented and possible mechanisms of pathogenesis are discussed.
Results:
Chylothorax has two major complications: respiratory and metabolic. The modern concepts of treatment are summarized.
Conclusions:
After neck dissection, the clinician should suspect chylothorax if the patient had respiratory embarrassment and an abnormal chest x-ray postoperatively.