HEPATIC HYDROTHORAX - DIAGNOSIS AND MANAGEMENT

Twelve cases of right hepatic hydrothorax are reported. Tc-99m SC that was injected intraperitoneally and intrapleurally provided evidence o f a one-way flow of fluid from the peritoneal to the pleural cavity. E ight patients, whose hydrothorax was refractory to sodium restriction, diuretics and repeated thoracenteses, were treated by endopleural tet racycline instillation. The pathogenetic role of the diaphragmatic def ect and the diagnostic usefulness of radionuclide imaging are stressed .