Splenic Scintiscanning in the Preoperative Diagnosis of Subcapsular Hematoma

Abstract

AFTER splenic trauma a hematoma may reabsorb if it is small and may also undergo liquefaction, with subsequent cyst formation.1 In a certain number of cases it may slowly enlarge and subsequently rupture through the capsule, provoking the catastrophic abdominal picture of a ruptured spleen.Since the hematoma displaces the normal splenic pulp, the presence of such a lesion should produce a filling defect on the splenic scintiscan – even when other diagnostic criteria are lacking. A case recently seen at this Hospital afforded an ideal opportunity to test this thesis.Case ReportA 27-year-old man fell from a 7 . . .