[Videolaparoscopy and conservative treatment of splenic injuries]

The treatment of lesions due to blunt abdominal trauma has changed considerably in the last decade. With a view to the prevention of immediate and later complications of splenectomy, conservative surgical technique have been put forward, or else, when the haemodynamic conditions of the patient permit, techniques of non-operative monitoring of splenic lesions. Laparoscopy today constitutes an approach to the diagnosis and treatment of blunt abdominal trauma which decisively favours conservative treatment. The experience presented bears witness to the potential usefulness of laparoscopy in these cases. Technological progress will widen the possibilities of this method and more detailed studies will define its exact indications.