Splenic infarction

10 years of experience

Antopolsky, Meir MD
Hiller, Nurit MD
Salameh, Shaden MD
Goldshtein, Beth MD
Stalnikowicz, Ruth MD

^aEmergency Medicine Department, Hadassah Mount Scopus Hospital, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
^bRadiology Department, Hadassah Mount Scopus Hospital, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
^cInternal Medicine Department, Hadassah Mount Scopus Hospital, Jerusalem 91120, Israel

^*Corresponding author.

E-mail address:[email protected] (M. Antopolsky).

Received January 13, 2008; revised February 9, 2008; accepted February 9, 2008

American Journal of Emergency Medicine 27(3):p 262-265, March 2009.

Abstract

Objective:

The aim of this study was to study the clinical presentation of splenic infarction.

Methods:

A retrospective examination of files during a 10-year period was conducted. Only computed tomography—proven diagnoses of splenic infarction were included. Signs, symptoms, medical history, and results of investigation were recorded.

Results:

We found 49 episodes of acute splenic infarction. Abdominal or left flank pain was the most common symptoms (80%), and left upper quadrant tenderness was the most common sign (35%). Splenic infarction was the presenting symptom of underlying disease in 16.6% of the patients. Based on the computed tomography results, ultrasound was diagnostic only in 18% of patients. There was no in-hospital mortality or serious complications.

Discussion:

We present, to the best of our knowledge, the largest series of patients with splenic infarction diagnosed on clinical and radiological grounds. Awareness of the diagnostic possibility of splenic infarction in a patient with unexplained abdominal pain is important because it can be the presenting symptom of potentially fatal diseases.