Pattern of Visceral and Peritoneal Injuries in Fatal Blunt Abdominal Trauma at a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital in South India

Abstract

The present prospective study aims to establish the pattern of visceral and peritoneal injuries in cases
with blunt abdominal trauma subjected to post-mortem examination in a tertiary care teaching hospital
in Hyderabad, Telangana for two years period between June 2010 and May 2012. Details pertaining to
Cause of injury, pattern of injuries and cause of death were obtained from post mortem examination reports.
The study revealed that among 150 cases in the study period, existence of both liver and spleen injuries
(n=35; 23.33%) was most common followed by liver injury (n=23; 15.33%). The most frequent visceral and
peritoneal injury reported was liver in 72 cases (48%), followed by mesentery in 54 cases (36%), spleen in
52 (34.67%) and intestine in 47 cases (31.33%). Abdominal injury was found associated with other injuries
like head, chest, limb injuries in 36% cases.