A University of California, Irvine study has found that the overall splenic injury rate for patients undergoing colorectal resection was appears to be less than 1.0%, but several predictors of these injuries emerged. The most common procedure associated with splenic injury was transverse colectomy (3.4%). Potent independent predictors of splenic injury included:
Type of resection (transverse, total, or left colectomy).
Type of pathology (malignancy or diverticulitis).
Open operation.
Teaching hospital.
Male sex, peripheral vascular disease, and emergent admission were deemed less effective predictors. The authors note that surgeons should be aware of these risk factors and inform patients accordingly.
Abstract: Archives of Surgery, April 2012.
