Table 1.
Patient characteristics. Characteristics of the entire patient cohort as well as patient subgroups with thoracic (chylothorax/chylopericardium), abdominal (chylous ascites) or abdomino-thoracic (chylothorax/chylopericardium and chylous ascites) effusions. LAM: lymphangioleiomyomatosis.
| Parameter | Overall | Thoracic | Abdominal | Abdomino-Thoracic |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of patients (percentage) |
78 | 48 (61.5%) |
22 (28.2%) |
8 (10.3%) |
| Male:Female | 47:31 | 27:21 | 14:8 | 6:2 |
| Median age (range) | 56.3 (18–86) years | 59.4 (18–86) years | 64.2 (29–80) years | 53.0 (19–61) years |
| Median daily drainage volume (range) |
1000 mL (250–8000 mL) |
1000 mL (285–8000 mL) |
1000 mL (250–3500 mL) |
1850 mL (315–2250 mL) |
| Indication for lymphatic intervention | ||||
| Thoracic (chylothorax/chylopericardium) | 48 (61.5%) | |||
| Abdominal (chylous ascites) | 22 (28.2%) | |||
| Abdomino-thoracic (Combined chylothorax/chylous ascites) | 8 (10.3%) | |||
| Etiology | ||||
| Traumatic | 47 (60.3%) | 30 (62.5%) | 16 (72.7%) | 1 (12.5%) |
| Tumor surgery | 37 | 23 | 13 | 1 |
| Vascular surgery | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Heart surgery | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Other surgery | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Non-traumatic | 31 (39.7%) | 18 (37.5%) | 6 (27.3%) | 7 (87.5%) |
| No known underlying disease |
16 | 8 | 4 | 4 |
| Lymphoma | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| Syndrome (e.g., LAM) | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Congestive heart failure |
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Venous obstruction | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Comorbidities | ||||
| Cardiovascular disease | 17 (21.8%) | 10 (20.8%) | 6 (27.3%) | 1 (12.5%) |
| Malignancy | 49 (62.8%) | 31 (64.6%) | 15 (68.2%) | 3 (37.5%) |
| Liver cirrhosis | 4 (5.1%) | 1 (2.1%) | 3 (13.6%) | 0 (0.0%) |