Laparoscopic retroperitoneal splenopexy for wandering spleen: A novel technique using a three-incision...

Wandering spleen is a rare condition for which splenopexy is indicated to prevent splenic torsion. We present a novel laparoscopic splenopexy technique for wandering spleen based on creation of a three-incision retroperitoneal pouch.

A 12-year-old male patient with abdominal distention and vomiting was transferred to our institution. Contrast-enhanced CT revealed a swollen wandering spleen with associated gastric volvulus, and the patient underwent laparoscopic surgery. A 5-mm camera port was inserted through an umbilical incision with two additional ports, one in the right upper abdomen and one in the left flank. Normal saline was injected into the retroperitoneal space from the left flank with a 23-G needle to create a retroperitoneal pouch. Three ventrodorsal peritoneal incisions were created at the same site in the peritoneum. The swollen spleen was inserted into the retroperitoneal pouch from the central incision, and the upper and lower poles of the spleen were exposed to the abdominal cavity from the cranial and caudal incisions to prevent splenic torsion. Finally, anterior gastropexy was performed. The postoperative period was uneventful. The patient was discharged on postoperative day 11 without complaints. As of 10 months after surgery, the patient had no recurrences of splenic torsion or gastric volvulus.

In the present method, the retroperitoneal pouch was created without difficulty by injection of normal saline. Even in a patient with a swollen spleen, this novel method could prevent splenic torsion without using artificial materials or extensively dissecting the retroperitoneal space.