Thoracic splenosis; from a thoracoscopic viewpoint

Abstract

Thoraic splenosis is a rare entity after splenic and diaphragmatic injury. We report on a patient who had left pulmonary masses on a routine chest roentgenogram. It was impossible to rule out the possibility of other tumors or malignancies from past history, radiographic findings and needle biopsy. The patient underwent a video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. The resected tumor was diagnosed as the splenic tissue. This represents the first reported case, that diagnosed by video-assisted thoracoscopic resection, of thoracic splenosis. The course of dissemination of the splenic tissue to chest is considered to be the costophregmatic recessus by the intrathoracic findings thoracoscopically.