Related Experiment Videos
Spontaneous hepatic hemorrhage: clinical and CT findings
D Merine1, E K Fishman, E A Zerhouni
1Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD 21205.
Insights
Spontaneous hepatic hemorrhage, often linked to liver lesions or toxicity, can be diagnosed using imaging. Computed tomography (CT) effectively reveals hematoma extent and age in these non-traumatic liver bleeding cases.
Area of Science:
- Hepatology
- Radiology
- Gastroenterology
Background:
- Spontaneous hepatic hemorrhage is a rare but serious condition.
- Underlying liver pathology is frequently associated with non-traumatic intrahepatic bleeding.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review clinical and radiological findings in patients with spontaneous hepatic hemorrhage.
- To evaluate the utility of imaging modalities in diagnosing and characterizing hepatic hematomas.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of clinical records and radiologic findings in six patients.
- Diagnostic imaging included computed tomography (CT), sonography, and celiac arteriography.
Main Results:
- Four patients had underlying liver lesions including hepatocellular carcinoma, lymphoma metastasis, and hepatic adenoma.
- One patient experienced hemorrhage due to organophosphate toxicity; etiology was unknown in another.
- CT was valuable for assessing hematoma size and evolution of density changes.
Conclusions:
- Spontaneous hepatic hemorrhage can be associated with various liver conditions and toxic exposures.
- CT is a crucial imaging tool for evaluating spontaneous hepatic hemorrhage, providing information on extent and age of the hematoma.
Abstract:
The clinical records and radiologic findings in six patients with spontaneous (nontraumatic) intrahepatic and subcapsular hemorrhage were reviewed. Four patients had underlying liver lesions (hepatocellular carcinoma and metastasis from B-cell lymphoma in one patient each and hepatic adenoma in two other patients). One patient had intrahepatic hemorrhage associated with hepatic necrosis secondary to organophosphate toxicity. The specific etiology of hemorrhage in the remaining patient proved elusive despite an exhaustive search. Hepatic hemorrhage was diagnosed and followed by CT (six cases), sonography (two cases), and celiac arteriography (three cases). Computed tomography was useful in defining the extent of the hematoma and showing density changes related to the age of the hematoma.