Spontaneousrupture of a giant thoracic duct cyst presenting with abdominal pain and a tension chylothorax

Abstract

Ruptured thoracic duct cysts are an extremely rare occurrence that may arise spontaneously or due to trauma. Surgical treatment is needed to provide a definitive diagnosis, drain the chylothorax and ligate the thoracic duct to prevent reoccurrence. We report the case of a woman with a ruptured thoracic duct cyst presenting with abdominal pain and subsequent tension chylothorax. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first such reported case.

Keywords: Chylothorax; Mediastinal mass; Thoracic duct cyst.