Swiss medical weekly
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In a 68-year-old male hospitalized for a traffic accident physical examination revealed a left tibial fracture and an asymptomatic left pleural effusion. The evolution was characterized essentially by the appearance of oedema of the legs, ascites, and aggravation of the left pleural effusion with concomitant right effusion. Immediate therapy consisted of digitalis and diuretics. ⋯ Chylous ascites is not a frequent finding, since only 28 cases have been diagnosed in 20 years at the Massachusetts General Hospital and 71 in 30 years at the Mayo Clinic. In these 2 series a tumoral etiology was found in more than 85% of the cases. The most frequently encountered tumor was lymphoma followed by cancer of the pancreas, stomach, or other tumors.