Management of blunt splenic injury in patients with concurrent infectious mononucleosis

Selective nonoperative management is appropriate for most blunt splenic injuries in adults and children, but the efficacy of this approach is unknown when injury occurs in patients with concurrent infectious mononucleosis. We have reviewed our experience during the past 23 years with the selective nonoperative management of blunt splenic injury in these patients. Medical record review identified nine patients with blunt splenic injury and infectious mononucleosis from 1978 to 2001, representing 3.3 per cent of our total trauma population with blunt splenic injury treated during that interval. Two patients underwent immediate splenectomy because of hemodynamic instability. Seven patients were admitted with the intent to treat nonoperatively. Five patients were successfully managed nonoperatively. Two patients failed nonoperative management and underwent splenectomy, one because of hemodynamic instability and one because of an infected splenic hematoma. Concurrent infectious mononucleosis does not preclude the successful nonoperative management of blunt splenic injury. This small subset of patients may be managed nonoperatively using the same criteria as for patients whose splenic injuries are not complicated by infectious mononucleosis.