Abstract Lymphatic malformations (LMs), previously known as lymphangiomas, are rare, benign tumors characterized by abnormal proliferation of lymphatic vessels. They are common in the neck and axilla. Abdominal LMs are exceedingly rare. Clinically, abdominal LMs are often asymptomatic and discovered incidentally on imaging. The following case presents a young female whose diagnosis of abdominal LMs was associated with chronic diarrhea, weight loss, and intermittent edema. Nearly all LMs are treated surgically. Upon literature review, this is the first case of an adult with abdominal LMs causing protein-losing enteropathy that was treated with dietary changes alone.
Thomas et al. (Wed,) studied this question.