[Late-onset Chylothorax after Right Upper Lobectomy;Report of a Case]

Abstract

Chylothorax after pulmonary resection is diagnosed usually within a few days after surgery, hence late-onset chylothorax is relatively rare complication. A 79-year-old woman underwent right upper lobectomy and mediastinal dissection for lung cancer. A chest tube was removed on postoperative day (POD)3, and she was discharged on POD 8. Fifty days after an operation, the patient developed a dyspnea on effort, and chest radiography revealed a right-sided pleural effusion, which we diagnosed as chylothorax. Because the treatments of a fat-free diet and subcutaneous octreotide acetate administration were ineffective, thoracic duct ligation was finally performed. The post-reoperative course was uneventful.