Tropical Surgical abdominal emergencies blunt splenic rupture in Calabar

ABSTRACT

A detailed study of splenic rupture in 34 consecutive patients living in souttheastern equatorial rainforest Nigeria was conducted during a 5-years period. The results clearly show that blunt abdominal injury from road traffic accident (RTA) was the cause of rupture in the vast majority of cases. Road traffic accident was due in many cases to collision with a motor bike which is a popular means of transportation in this region. Although the external injury to the abdomen was slight; and in some cases nil; the ensuing trauma to the spleen was extensive. In contrast RTA due to the motor car; seen in 5 of the 34 patients studied; caused much associated injury to the patient. The pattern of splenic rupture seen in this tropical African community is out-standingly in contrast with that of the developed countries of the West where spontaneous rupture of diseased spleen seems to be common