Scintigraphic localization of lymphatic leakage site after oral administration of iodine-123-IPPA

Chylothorax can occur secondary to traumatic lesions of the thoracic duct caused by chest injuries, surgical procedures involving the pleural space, neoplasms or malformations of the lymphatics.

Lymphatic leakage sites were localized by scintigraphy after oral administration of the 123I-labeled long-chain fatty acid derivative iodophenyl pentadecanoic acid (IPPA). We report on three patients with different lymphatic leakage sites and on one normal control subject.

IPPA scintigraphy localized the lymphatic leakage site correctly in all three patients. In two of them, the method even guided the successful surgical treatment of the leakage.

This approach is suitable for detecting lymphatic leakages of intestinal origin.