[Closed abdominal injuries: the diagnostic reliability of ultrasonics]

47 consecutive patients underwent a ultrasound examination: they had suspect clinical-laboratorial picture caused from traumatic lesions of the abdominal viscera. We considered two kinds of visceral lesions: alterations of the parenchimal organs and of the empty ones. In the first group we analyzed direct signs of the lesion; in the second group we considered the indirect signs (hemothorax, hemoperitoneum and so on). Sometimes meteorism and the patient's conditions limited the reliability of the examination. We registered three false negative in volumetrically regular spleens, the seat hampering the complete exploration of the organ; on the contrary the lack of experience may cause interpretative mistakes (false positive). The obtained results induce to consider the employment of the ultrasound diagnostic imaging in abdominal traumas as a first approach, efficient test because, very often, it can condition surgical decisions, avoiding more aggressive diagnostic investigations.