title: Spontaneous splenic rupture during the course of a rubella infection: report of a case.
abstract: We report herein the case of a 26-year-old man who suffered a spontaneous splenic rupture during the course of a rubella infection. Initially, he presented with a high fever accompanied by a skin rash extending from the body trunk to the extremities and was admitted to hospital 3 days after onset for sudden upper abdominal pain radiating to both shoulders. On admission, he was pale and sweating with hypotension. An abdominal ultrasonographic study revealed a collection of fluid in the perisplenic space and exploratory laparotomy confirmed an intraabdominal hemorrhage from a ruptured spleen. The patient was treated by splenectomy and recovered uneventfully. The excised spleen was found to be moderately enlarged with a denuded capsule. Because the patient had no history of any external trauma and a positive serological test for rubella, we concluded that rubella contributed to the spontaneous splenic rupture in this case.
authors.affiliation: First Department of Surgery, Kobe University School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nishida
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ku
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Saitoh
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012409:Rubella / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D012422:Rupture, Spontaneous; D013154:Spleen / Q000473:pathology; D013161:Splenic Rupture / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery / Q000821:virology*