2025 Volume 45 Issue 1 Pages 37-40
The patient was a man in his 40s who visited our hospital complaining of abdominal pain after a left flank injury. Abdominal contrast CT revealed second-degree splenic injury and bloody ascites, and we diagnosed the patient as having traumatic splenic injury. The patient was hemodynamically stable and we admitted him for conservative treatment. However, the day after admission, the anemia progressed and bloody ascites increased, and we performed transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) of the splenic artery. Six days after the TAE, the patient developed abdominal pain and increased inflammatory response marker levels. Abdominal contrast-enhanced CT revealed a splenic abscess, and we performed percutaneous drainage using a 12Fr aspiration kit. The condition improved thereafter, the catheter was removed after 8 days, and the patient was discharged. However, the splenic abscess recurred, and he was readmitted to the hospital. We performed drainage again, but as there was little improvement, we performed a splenectomy. The condition improved and he was discharged on the 12th postoperative day. After splenic artery embolization, it is important to keep in mind the possibility of development of a splenic abscess and to consider surgical treatment without delay if conservative treatment does not result in significant improvement.
