Laparoscopy in a case of pediatric blunt abdominal trauma

The use of laparoscopy in the assessment and treatment of blunt abdominal trauma has been reported for both adults and children. With increasing surgical experience and improvements in equipment, an expanding range of therapeutic interventions is available. The management of a 7-year-old boy who sustained blunt abdominal trauma during a fall from a bicycle is described. He was hemodynamically stable, but his abdomen remained tender, with guarding in the right upper quadrant. Serial ultrasound scans showed a thick-walled gallbladder and increasing intraabdominal fluid. Laparoscopy was used both as a diagnostic tool, and then as a therapeutic method. Diagnostic laparoscopy showed a ruptured gallbladder treated by laparoscopic cholecystectomy. A 3-cm grade 1 liver laceration also was identified, which required no intervention. Free bile was aspirated and the peritoneal cavity thoroughly lavaged. The child made a rapid postoperative recovery. The ultimate aim in the management of blunt trauma is to avoid unnecessary laparotomy while preventing undue delay in the detection of significant intraabdominal pathology. Computed tomography scanning, ultrasound scanning, and diagnostic peritoneal lavage all have strengths for detecting different injury types, but they also have a low specificity in determining the need for laparotomy. The advantages and limitations of laparoscopy in hemodynamically stable children who have sustained injuries from blunt trauma are discussed. The authors recommend laparoscopy in experienced hands as an additional tool for the optimal management of selected trauma cases.