CT in blunt liver trauma.
Nonsurgical treatment has become the standard of care in hemodynamically stable patients with blunt liver trauma. The use of helical computed tomography (CT) in the diagnosis and management of blunt liver trauma is mainly responsible for the notable shift during the past decade from routine surgical to nonsurgical management of blunt liver injuries. CT is the diagnostic modality of choice for the evaluation of blunt liver trauma in hemodynamically stable patients and can accurately help identify hepatic parenchymal injuries, help quantify the degree of hemoperitoneum, and reveal associated injuries in other abdominal organs, retroperitoneal structures, and the gastrointestinal tract. The CT features of blunt liver trauma include lacerations, subcapsular or parenchymal hematomas, active hemorrhage, juxtahepatic venous injuries, periportal low attenuation, and a flat inferior vena cava. It is important that radiologists be familiar with the liver injury grading system based on these CT features that was established by the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma. CT is also useful in the assessment of delayed complications in blunt liver trauma, including delayed hemorrhage, hepatic or perihepatic abscess, posttraumatic pseudoaneurysm and hemobilia, and biliary complications such as biloma and bile peritonitis. Follow-up CT is needed in patients with high-grade liver injuries to identify potential complications that require early intervention.
Yoon
Woong
W
Department of Radiology, Chonnam National University Hospital, Chonnam National University Medical School, 8 Hak-dong, Dong-Ku, Gwangju 501-757, South Korea. radyoon@chonnam.ac.kr
Jeong
Yong Yeon
YY
Kim
Jae Kyu
JK
Seo
Jeong Jin
JJ
Lim
Hyo Soon
HS
Shin
Sang Soo
SS
Kim
Jung Chul
JC
Jeong
Seong Wook
SW
Park
Jin Gyoon
JG
Kang
Heoung Keun
HK
D006470:Hemorrhage / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000293:injuries*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014949:Wounds, Nonpenetrating / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*