Cardiac tamponade resulting from massive chylopericardium after an aorta-coronary bypass operation.

Isolated chylopericardium after a cardiac operation is a rare clinical entity. A case of isolated chylopericardium with cardiac tamponade after a single aorta-coronary artery bypass graft in a 49-year-old man is presented. Nonsurgical management was unsuccessful. Multiple surgical procedures were necessary for complete control of this difficult problem. The cause of chylopericardium in this patient appears to have been injury to the tributaries of lymphatic ducts in the pericardium.