Infected Abdominal Cystic Lymphangioma: A Rare Cause of Inflammatory Acute Abdom

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Author Info

Angélica Maria Lucchese Antonio Nocchi Kalil Fernanda Onofrio Rodrigo Zanatta Ribeiro

Corresponding Author

Carlos Eduardo Oliveira dos Santos
Department of Gastroenterology and Endoscopy, Santa Casa de Caridade Hospital, Bagé, RS, Brazil

A B S T R A C T

Background: Cystic lymphangioma (CL) results from congenital malformation of the lymphatic channels found especially in children, being rarely diagnosed in adults. Intra-abdominal location is unusual, and only exceptionally may the abdominal cavity be infected. Case report: We report the case of a 28-year-old man with retroperitoneal CL who presented with acute abdominal pain, fever, signs of sudden decompression, and leukocytosis. Imaging studies showed an intraabdominal collection of fat density within the cyst. Presence of fat within an intra-abdominal cystic mass is suggestive of a dermoid cyst (mature cystic teratoma), CL, or lymphocele. At laparotomy, the tumor was found in the retroperitoneum and completely resected. Histopathology of the cystic lesion identified a fibrinopurulent exudate and lymphatic channels interspersed with lymphoid stroma, while immunohistochemistry showed positive staining for D2-40 and CD34, confirming the diagnosis of infected retroperitoneal cyst. Conclusions: Presentation as an acute abdomen is uncommon and surgery is the treatment of choice for symptomatic patients with CL. The prognosis is excellent, and recurrence rates are extremely low if the cyst is completely excised.

Article Info

Article Type

Case Report

Publication history

Received: Tue 22, Jan 2019
Accepted: Fri 15, Feb 2019
Published: Mon 11, Mar 2019

Copyright

© 2023 Carlos Eduardo Oliveira dos Santos. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Hosting by Science Repository.
DOI: 10.31487/j.SCR.2019.01.008