Abdominal apoplexy

Seven patients with abdominal apoplexy have been treated between 1975 and 1977 and their clinical features and management are reviewed. Accurate preoperative diagnosis is difficult but the condition should be considered in patients with abdominal pain and vomiting or diarrhoea who have signs of shock, peritonism or a falling haemoglobin level. Urgent laparotomy to identify and ligate the bleeding artery offers the best chance of survival.