Recurrent abdominal pain in a woman with a wandering spleen.

Abstract

A 28-year-old Malay woman presented with recurrent abdominal pain for five years. She had delivered her child seven months earlier. She was found to have bicytopenia, with a haemoglobin level of 7.9 g/dL and a platelet count of 85 x 10(9)/L. Computed tomography revealed a wandering spleen. Complications of a wandering spleen, for which splenectomy is advocated, include functional asplenia (due to torsion of the splenic pedicle), splenic infarction or splenic vessel thrombosis. A splenectomy was performed and at operation, splenomegaly with a long mesentery was found. Splenic histology was negative for malignancy. The bicytopenia resolved postoperatively, and she remains well.

• Authors: H H Tan, L L P L Ooi, D Tan, C K Tan
• Journal: Singapore medical journal (Singapore Med J) Vol. 48 Issue 4 Pg. e122-4 (Apr 2007) ISSN: 2737-5935 [Electronic] India
• PMID: 17384868 (Publication Type: Case Reports, Journal Article)

Topics

• Abdominal Pain (etiology)
• Adult
• Female
• Humans
• Splenectomy
• Tomography, X-Ray Computed
• Torsion Abnormality (surgery)
• Wandering Spleen (complications, diagnostic imaging, surgery)