Management of caudate lobe injury. Case report

This article describes a case of abdominal trauma with laceration of the caudate lobe, avulsion of its short hepatic veins and tear of the inferior vena cava (IVC). Anatomic segmentectomy of I segment and direct suture of inferior cava vein was performed. On its arrival to the Emergency Department the patient was hemodynamically stable. Ultrasonography and CT scan demonstrated a fracture of I hepatic segment associated to a retroperitoneal haematoma. Because progressive anemia and unstable hemodynamic state, the patient was taken to the operating room for intervention. No postoperative complications due to surgery were reported. The patient left the hospital in XXII postoperative day, after normalization of clinical parameters.