[Blunt injuries of the abdomen in Gorenjsko during the past 3 years].

This paper concerns blunt injuries of the abdomen in Gorenjsko (a Region of SR Slovenija northern of Ljubljana) treated during the past 3 years. Of the total 131 hospitalized patients, 51 (or 43.5%) were operated on. In 5 (8,8%) an explorative lapartomy was performed in which no pathological substrate was found. The most frequent lesions were found in the spleen, liver and small intestine. The paper stresses the importance of an early and correct diagnosis of such injuries. In making the exact diagnosis aside from the physical evaluation, the most important procedure is lavagage of the abdomen which the authors used in all cases suspect for acute abdomen and obtained excellent results. In 20% of the patients surgery was performed within 2 hours of their of hospital admission. Injuries of the liver were treated with necrectomy, ligature of the bleeding vessels, suturing of the biliary canals, and establishment of drainage. Ligation of the hepatic artery and hepatic resection was performed in two cases. Injuries of the pancreas were also treated with necrectomy, hemostasis and drainage. In one case with a posttraumatic pseudocyst of the pancreas surgery was performed with an isolated intestinal loop according to Roux-Herzen. In conclusion the author insists on a prompt diagnosis in which abdominal lavage plays an important role. Using such an approach the morbidity is significantly reduced.