CT evaluation of retroperitoneal hemorrhage associated with femoral arteriography

CT was used to assess retroperitoneal hemorrhagic complications temporally related to femoral artery catheterization in eight patients. In six patients with retroperitoneal hemorrhage caused by an angiographic complication, CT showed a high-density soft-tissue mass originating at the inguinal vessels and extending into the ipsilateral retroperitoneal spaces. In the other two patients, CT not only excluded significant bleeding from the catheterized vessel but determined an alternative diagnosis (hematoma secondary to anticoagulation and pneumatosis intestinalis due to ischemic bowel). CT findings prompted surgery in three patients.