Pediatric chylous ascites treatment with combined ultrasound and fluoroscopy-guided intranodal lymphangiography.

Abstract

Chylous ascites is a form of ascites resulting from the leakage of lymph into the peritoneal cavity, which is particularly rare in children, most common etiology being an iatrogenic injury to lymphatics during surgery. Initial conservative management options include medium-chain triglycerides-based diet, somatostatin analogs, and total parenteral nutrition. If these fail, then interventions such as paracentesis with sclerotherapy, surgical ligation, or peritoneal shunts have been described. This study reports a case of a 7-year-old child with refractory chylous ascites to demonstrate a minimally invasive technique of intranodal lymphangiography with lipiodol as a viable treatment option for chylous ascites in children, particularly in cases of minor and undetectable leaks.