Surgery>>>>>Chest Wall, Pleura, and Mediastinum
Question 23#

A chylothorax is likely to be present in a patient whose pleural fluid analysis results show a triglyceride level of::

A. 80 mg/100 mL
B. 100 mg/100 mL
C. 45 mg/100 mL
D. 130 mg/100 mL

Correct Answer is D

Comment:

Laboratory analysis of the pleural fluid shows a high lymphocyte count and high triglyceride levels. If the triglyceride level is greater than 1 10 mg/100 mL, a chylothorax is almost certainly present (a 99% accuracy rate). If the triglyceride level is less than 50 mg/mL, there is only a 5% chance of chylothorax.