An unusual cause of pelvic mass

Pelvic pain with an associated pelvic mass is a common problem in the emergency room (ER) or physician's office. Concerns about ectopic pregnancy, infection, or malignancy usually dominate the diagnostic evaluation. At the same time, domestic violence as the cause of a pelvic mass is seldom suspected by physicians.

A 38-year-old woman came to the ER with left lower quadrant pain and a left pelvic mass. After four hospital days and multiple diagnostic imaging studies, the diagnosis of hematoma caused by physical trauma to the abdomen was elucidated.

Proper diagnosis of the cause of the pelvic mass could have been made earlier by careful attention to the social history and by recognizing the high incidence of domestic violence as opposed to the relative infrequency of some other diagnostic entities for which the patient was tested.