title: Chylothorax after neck dissection for thyroid carcinomas: report of three cases.
abstract: Chylothorax is a rare complication of neck dissection. We report three cases of chylothorax after neck dissections for thyroid carcinoma and attribute this relatively high incidence to the assumption that most patients are asymptomatic. Thus, conventional chest X-ray or ultrasonography in the early postoperative period may be warranted to exclude asymptomatic chylothorax, especially if the thoracic duct is injured and ligated during the operation. We suggest that for chylothorax induced by ligation of the thoracic duct, which may be transient and resolve quickly, short-term thoracic drainage is enough.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University, 88 Jiefang Road, Hangzhou, 310009 Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.forename: Zhi-Yu
authors.initials: ZY
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Xin-Bin
authors.initials: XB
authors.lastname: Lin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015505:Chest Tubes; D002916:Chylothorax / Q000209:etiology* / Q000628:therapy; D004322:Drainage / Q000295:instrumentation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D037981:Neck Dissection / Q000379:methods*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000209:etiology*; D013964:Thyroid Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D013965:Thyroidectomy / Q000379:methods*
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