European Journal of Case Reports in Internal Medicine (Jun 2024)

A rare case of membranous nephropathy complicated by chylothorax

  • Abdelhadi Farouji,
  • Mohammad N. Kloub,
  • Ahmad W. Haddad,
  • Amaar S. Ahmad,
  • Priscilla Chow,
  • Richard Miller

DOI
https://doi.org/10.12890/2024_004631

Abstract

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Background: Chylothorax can be classified into traumatic and nontraumatic based on the etiology. Nephrotic syndrome is a very rare cause of nontraumatic chylothorax in adults. Case presentation: A 66-year-old woman with membranous nephropathy who was non-compliant with her management, presented with dyspnea, and was found to have a large right sided chylothorax. Her chylothorax was secondary to membranous nephropathy after excluding other causes, which has been rarely reported in literature. Conclusion: This case highlights the possibility of nephrotic syndrome causing chylothorax, especially in patients with undiagnosed nephrotic syndrome or patients non-compliant with their management. When evaluating a patient with chylothorax, providers should consider nephrotic syndrome in the differential diagnosis.

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