Right postoperative pleural effusion and pulmonary embolism following laparoscopic gynecological surgery: A rare case report and PRISMA-driven systematic review

review OA: gold CC0 ⤵ 1 in-corpus citation
AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-07

This case report and systematic review highlight that right postoperative pleural effusion and pulmonary embolism are rare but potentially life-threatening complications following laparoscopic gynecological surgery, treatable with interventions like pigtail insertion and anticoagulation.

One-sentence paraphrase of the abstract; not a substitute for reading it. No clinical advice. How this works

Abstract

The incidence of postlaparoscopic pleural effusion and pulmonary embolism were rare. However, it might be life-threatening. Therefore, confirming the risk factor and management is important. We present a 53-year-old woman with ovarian endometriosis arranged for laparoscopic surgery. However, desaturation was noted on postoperation day 1. Chest radiograph and chest computed tomography showed pleural effusion and pulmonary embolism. Pleural pigtail insertion was performed and anticoagulant medication, albumin, and lasix were given. The patient's recovery was uneventful. Several factors have been advanced to explain including the prolonged duration of the operation. Management options include supplemental oxygen therapy, and pigtail catheter insertion. Mechanical prophylaxis (sequential compression devices and graduated compression stockings) is sufficient for venous thromboembolism prevention.

My notes (saved in your browser only)

Condition tags

endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Gynecologic Surgical Procedures Laparoscopy Pleural Effusion Postoperative Complications Pulmonary Embolism Endometriosis Endometriosis Female Gynecologic Surgical Procedures Humans Laparoscopy Middle Aged Pleural Effusion Pleural Effusion Postoperative Complications Pulmonary Embolism Pulmonary Embolism Venous Thromboembolism Venous Thromboembolism Venous Thromboembolism

Citation neighborhood (sparse)

Too few in-corpus citations on either side for a chart; here are the lists.

Cites (1)

Cited by (1)

References (14)

Cited by (1)

Source provenance

europepmc
last seen: 2026-06-13T06:22:48.782012+00:00
openalex
last seen: 2026-06-04T00:00:01.174412+00:00
pubmed
last seen: 2026-05-13T22:22:48.502547+00:00
License: CC0 · commercial use OK