Bilateral diaphragmatic injury diagnosed by laparoscopy

ABSTRACT

Rupture of the diaphragm from blunt trauma is uncommon, but improved prehospital care and transportation of victims has increased the frquency at which patients who sustain this injury arrive at the emergency room alive. We report a case of bilateral diaphragmatic rupture from blunt abdominal trauma in a 33-year old man. Diagnosis was established by laparoscopy after suggestive chest X-rays, liver scintigraphy, CT scan and magnetic resonance imaging. The methods used to diagnose this condition are analyzed