Splenic Infarcts

Excerpt

The spleen is a hematopoietic organ that filters and removes aging blood products and aids in immunity against encapsulated bacterial organisms. Splenic infarction occurs when blood flow to the spleen is compromised, causing tissue ischemia and eventual necrosis. Splenic infarction may be the result of arterial or venous occlusion. Occlusion is usually caused by bland or septic emboli as well as venous congestion by abnormal cells. Infarction may involve a small segmental area of the spleen or may be global, depending on which vessel is occluded. This occurrence is caused by a wide variety of underlying disease states with prognosis dependent on the causative illness. The most typical presentation includes left sided abdominal pain in a patient with underlying hematologic disorder, blood borne malignancy, blunt abdominal trauma, hypercoagulable state, or embolic illness. Treatment of splenic infarction ranges from supportive care to splenectomy.

Therapeutic splenic infarction via splenic embolization has been used to treat hemorrhage from traumatic splenic injuries. Splenic embolization has also been used in the treatment of severe portal hypertension and in the pre-operative phase of splenectomy to reduce intra-operative blood loss.