Korpi, Säde; Salminen, Veera V.; Piili, Reetta P.; Paunu, Niina; Luukkaala, Tiina; Lehto, Juho T.
The optimal treatment of malignant ascites
(MA) and feasibility of the management with free drainage remain unclear. The of this research was to study the success of drainage, complications, and survival after
paracentesis or insertion of an indwelling tunneled catheter (TC) for the MA
performed on a day-case basis. The authors suggest that free drainage of MA seems feasible in an
outpatient clinic and that early insertion of TC should be considered to avoid repeated
paracenteses. However, in patients with pancreatic cancer, paracentesis might
be an accepted alternative due to their short life expectancy.