Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40000489›Full record

ArticlePediatric cardiology2026

Refractory Chylothorax: Descriptive Analysis and Predictive Model in Children with Postoperative Chylothorax.

Deborah U Frank, Cameron T Kasmai, Melissa M Winder, Ron W Reeder, Rebecca Bertrandt, Brooke Debroux, Priya Bhaskar, Stephanie P Schwartz, Amy Lay, Megan Matiasek and 8 more

Abstract readMulticenter Study
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Pediatric cardiology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

18 authors.

Deborah U FrankDivision of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University of Virginia, Arlington, VA, USA.
Cameron T KasmaiDivision of Pediatric Critical Care, Department of Pediatrics, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, USA.
Melissa M WinderDivision of Pediatric Cardiology, Department of Pediatrics, University of Utah, NP, 100 N Mario Capecchi Dr, Salt Lake City, UT, 84113, USA. Melissa.Winder@imail.org.
Ron W ReederDivision of Pediatric Critical Care, Department of Pediatrics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
Rebecca BertrandtDivision of Pediatric Critical Care, Department of Pediatrics, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, USA.
Brooke DebrouxPediatric Critical Care Services, Primary Children's Hospital, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
Priya BhaskarDivision of Pediatric Critical Care, Department of Pediatrics, University of Texas-Southwestern, Dallas, TX, USA.
Stephanie P SchwartzDivision of Pediatric Critical Care, Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
Amy LayDivision of Cardiology, Department of Pediatrics, Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
Megan MatiasekDivision of Cardiology, Department of Pediatrics, Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
Tia T RaymondDepartment of Pediatrics, Cardiac Critical Care, Medical City Children's Hospital, Dallas, TX, USA.
Ashima DasDepartment of Pediatrics, Cardiac Critical Care, Medical City Children's Hospital, Dallas, TX, USA.
Alyssa N BautistaDivision of Cardiac Critical Care, Department of Pediatrics, Children's National Health System, Washington, DC, USA.
Bao Nguyen PuenteDivision of Cardiac Critical Care, Department of Pediatrics, Children's National Health System, Washington, DC, USA.
AliGray TollisonDivision of Pediatric Cardiology, Department of Pediatrics, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.
Alissa LymanDivision of Pediatric Cardiology, Department of Pediatrics, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA.
Kathy HolmesDivision of Pediatric Cardiology, Department of Pediatrics, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA.
David K BaillyDivision of Pediatric Critical Care, Department of Pediatrics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Chylothorax following pediatric cardiac surgery increases morbidity and mortality. The clinical outcomes of patients with chylothorax with prolonged drainage compared to prompt resolution have not been described. This is a retrospective cohort study across eight United States pediatric cardiac intensive care units (ICU). Patients < 18 years old treated for chylothorax within 30 days of cardiac surgery were included, excluding Fontan palliations. Patients with chest tube duration ≥ 14 days were classified as long chylothorax (LC) vs. < 14 days as short chylothorax (SC). Univariable and multivariable logistic regression modeled patient characteristics associated with LC vs. SC. 134 patients had chylothorax, and 51 (38%) were LC. The proportion of LC increased with surgical complexity. LC was diagnosed later and had longer duration of mechanical ventilation, and ICU and hospital lengths of stay. In-hospital mortality was not different between groups. On POD 7, chest tube output (CTO, ml/kg) difference between LC and SC was greatest, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.76 for CTO predicting chylothorax. By multivariable analysis, clinical events associated with LC were sepsis or CLABSI (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 8.8), postoperative open sternum (aOR 3.3), and CTO > 20 ml/kg on POD 7 (aOR 7.3). High chest tube output on POD 7 may predict LC in children post-cardiac surgery. LC is associated with increased resource utilization and morbidity. Early identification of patients at risk for LC may allow for tailored treatment strategies and improved outcomes.

Indexed as

Cardiac Surgical ProceduresChylothoraxPostoperative ComplicationsAdolescentChest TubesChildChild, PreschoolDrainageFemaleHospital MortalityHumansInfantInfant, NewbornIntensive Care Units, PediatricLength of StayMaleCardiac surgeryChylothoraxCongenital heart diseaseMultivariable analysisPediatric

Identifiers

PMID40000489

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.