A rare opportunity for conservative treatment in a case of blunt trauma to the supradiaphragmatic inferior vena cava

Authors

Nicholas G. Matthees, Creighton University School of Medicine, Omaha, NE, USA nicholasmatthees@creighton.edu.
James A. Mankin, Department of Trauma Surgery, St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, Phoenix, AZ, USA.
Olga M. Kalinkin, Department of Radiology, St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, Phoenix, AZ, USA.
Randy R. Richardson, Department of Radiology, St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, Phoenix, AZ, USA.

Document Type

Article

Abstract

Injuries to the inferior vena cava (IVC) secondary to blunt trauma are rare and occur in only 1-10% of all blunt trauma patients. Management of these injuries has not been subjected to major studies, but several case reports and small retrospective studies have demonstrated that management can be tailored to the hemodynamic status of the patient; this is similar to the management of blunt liver injuries. Stable patients whose injuries have achieved local venous tamponade have been successfully treated without surgical intervention, while unstable patients require operative management. Regardless of patient status, however, IVC injuries are highly fatal with mortality rates between 70 and 90%. This report describes the case of a patient with a blunt traumatic injury to the supradiaphragmatic IVC with development of a pseudoaneurysm who was successfully managed conservatively.

Publication Date

11-4-2013

Publication Title

Journal of surgical case reports

ISSN

2042-8812

Volume

2013

Issue

11

PubMed ID

24968427

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1093/jscr/rjt092

Recommended Citation

Matthees, Nicholas G.; Mankin, James A.; Kalinkin, Olga M.; and Richardson, Randy R., "A rare opportunity for conservative treatment in a case of blunt trauma to the supradiaphragmatic inferior vena cava" (2013). Neuroradiology. 3.
https://scholar.barrowneuro.org/neuroradiology/3