Conservative management of postoperative chylothorax using somatostatin.
Chylothorax is a rare but serious postoperative complication of thoracic surgical procedures. We report the case of a 77-year-old man who underwent a coronary artery bypass procedure using a left internal mammary artery pedicle graft. A permanent pacemaker was required postoperatively. A persistent postoperative chylothorax developed necessitating continuous drainage and conservative management. Somatostatin was instituted when after 1 week this management failed to resolve the chylothorax. This led to rapid cessation of chyle production. Enteral feeding was reinstituted without complication and surgical intervention was avoided.
Kelly
R F
RF
Department of Surgery, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA. kelly071@tc.umn.edu
Shumway
S J
SJ
D000368:Aged; D015505:Chest Tubes; D002916:Chylothorax / Q000188:drug therapy*; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000601:surgery*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D006801:Humans; D007279:Injections, Subcutaneous; D007387:Internal Mammary-Coronary Artery Anastomosis; D008297:Male; D010138:Pacemaker, Artificial; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D013004:Somatostatin / Q000008:administration & dosage*
D013004:Somatostatin