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The peritoneum is the serous membrane forming the lining of the abdominal cavity or coelom in amniotes and some invertebrates, such as annelids. It covers most of the intra-abdominal organs, and is composed of a layer of mesothelium supported by a thin layer of connective tissue. This peritoneal lining of the cavity supports many of the abdominal organs and serves as a conduit for their blood vessels, lymphatic vessels, and nerves.
Laparoscopy is an operation performed in the abdomen or pelvis using small incisions with the aid of a camera. The laparoscope aids diagnosis or therapeutic interventions with a few small cuts in the abdomen.
Appendicitis is inflammation of the appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these typical symptoms. Severe complications of a ruptured appendix include widespread, painful inflammation of the inner lining of the abdominal wall and sepsis.
Peritonitis is inflammation of the localized or generalized peritoneum, the lining of the inner wall of the abdomen and cover of the abdominal organs. Symptoms may include severe pain, swelling of the abdomen, fever, or weight loss. One part or the entire abdomen may be tender. Complications may include shock and acute respiratory distress syndrome.
Major trauma is any injury that has the potential to cause prolonged disability or death. There are many causes of major trauma, blunt and penetrating, including falls, motor vehicle collisions, stabbing wounds, and gunshot wounds. Depending on the severity of injury, quickness of management, and transportation to an appropriate medical facility may be necessary to prevent loss of life or limb. The initial assessment is critical, and involves a physical evaluation and also may include the use of imaging tools to determine the types of injuries accurately and to formulate a course of treatment.
Pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP) is a clinical condition caused by cancerous cells that produce abundant mucin or gelatinous ascites. The tumors cause fibrosis of tissues and impede digestion or organ function, and if left untreated, the tumors and mucin they produce will fill the abdominal cavity. This will result in compression of organs and will destroy the function of the colon, small intestine, stomach, or other organs. Prognosis with treatment in many cases is optimistic, but the disease is lethal if untreated, with death occurring via cachexia, bowel obstruction, or other types of complications.
A splenic injury, which includes a ruptured spleen, is any injury to the spleen. The rupture of a normal spleen can be caused by trauma, such as a traffic collision.
Blunt trauma, also known as blunt force trauma or non-penetrating trauma, is physical trauma or impactful force to a body part, often occurring with road traffic collisions, direct blows, assaults, injuries during sports, and particularly in the elderly who fall. It is contrasted with penetrating trauma which occurs when an object pierces the skin and enters a tissue of the body, creating an open wound and bruise.
Focused assessment with sonography in trauma is a rapid bedside ultrasound examination performed by surgeons, emergency physicians, and paramedics as a screening test for blood around the heart or abdominal organs (hemoperitoneum) after trauma. There is also the extended FAST (eFAST) which includes some additional ultrasound views to assess for pneumothorax.
Hemoperitoneum is the presence of blood in the peritoneal cavity. The blood accumulates in the space between the inner lining of the abdominal wall and the internal abdominal organs. Hemoperitoneum is generally classified as a surgical emergency; in most cases, urgent laparotomy is needed to identify and control the source of the bleeding. In selected cases, careful observation may be permissible. The abdominal cavity is highly distensible and may easily hold greater than five liters of blood, or more than the entire circulating blood volume for an average-sized individual. Therefore, large-scale or rapid blood loss into the abdomen will reliably induce hemorrhagic shock and, if untreated, may rapidly lead to death.
A gunshot wound (GSW) is a penetrating injury caused by a projectile from a gun. Damages may include bleeding, bone fractures, organ damage, wound infection, loss of the ability to move part of the body and, in more severe cases, death. Damage depends on the part of the body hit, the path the bullet follows through the body, and the type and speed of the bullet. Long-term complications can include bowel obstruction, failure to thrive, neurogenic bladder and paralysis, recurrent cardiorespiratory distress and pneumothorax, hypoxic brain injury leading to early dementia, amputations, chronic pain and pain with light touch (hyperalgesia), deep venous thrombosis with pulmonary embolus, limb swelling and debility, lead poisoning, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Abdominal trauma is an injury to the abdomen. Signs and symptoms include abdominal pain, tenderness, rigidity, and bruising of the external abdomen. Complications may include blood loss and infection.
Diaphragmatic rupture is a tear of the diaphragm, the muscle across the bottom of the ribcage that plays a crucial role in breathing. Most commonly, acquired diaphragmatic tears result from physical trauma. Diaphragmatic rupture can result from blunt or penetrating trauma and occurs in about 0.5% of all people with trauma.
An exploratory laparotomy is a general surgical operation where the abdomen is opened and the abdominal organs are examined for injury or disease. It is the standard of care in various blunt and penetrating trauma situations in which there may be life-threatening internal injuries. It is also used in certain diagnostic situations, in which the operation is undertaken in search of a unifying cause for multiple signs and symptoms of disease, and in the staging of some cancers.
Dietmar H. Wittmann, M.D., Ph.D., FACS is an academic surgeon specializing in complex abdominal surgery. He was associated with the following medical schools: University of Hamburg, Germany, University of Düsseldorf, Germany, University of California San Francisco Medical School,USA, Hahnemann Medical School, Philadelphia,USA, Medical College of Wisconsin Milwaukee, USA. In addition to his clinical work, research, publications and teaching and lecturing worldwide, he is mostly known for his work relating to intra-abdominal infections, abdominal compartment syndrome abdominal compartment syndrome and staged abdominal repair STAR. Besides introducing the concept of calculated antimicrobial therapy Wittmann conceptualized the operative strategy of Staged Abdominal Repair (STAR) or the planned open abdomen to reverse the detrimental effects of the abdominal compartment syndrome and to treat imminent intra abdominal complications before they progress to life-threatening conditions. He is the inventor of a fascia prosthesis for temporary abdominal closure, the Artificial Bur Fascia Prosthesis (generic) or Wittmann Patch and Star Patch.
A stab wound is a specific form of penetrating trauma to the skin that results from a knife or a similar pointed object. While stab wounds are typically known to be caused by knives, they can also occur from a variety of implements, including broken bottles and ice picks. Most stabbings occur because of intentional violence or through self-infliction. The treatment is dependent on many different variables such as the anatomical location and the severity of the injury. Even though stab wounds are inflicted at a much greater rate than gunshot wounds, they account for less than 10% of all penetrating trauma deaths.
A liver injury, also known as liver laceration, is some form of trauma sustained to the liver. This can occur through either a blunt force such as a car accident, or a penetrating foreign object such as a knife. Liver injuries constitute 5% of all traumas, making it the most common abdominal injury. Generally nonoperative management and observation is all that is required for a full recovery.
A pancreatic injury is some form of trauma sustained by the pancreas. The injury can be sustained through either blunt forces, such as a motor vehicle accident, or penetrative forces, such as that of a gunshot wound. The pancreas is one of the least commonly injured organs in abdominal trauma.
A transmediastinal gunshot wound (TMGSW) is a penetrating injury to a person's thorax in which a bullet enters the mediastinum, possibly damaging some of the major structures in this area. Hemodynamic instability has been reported in approximately fifty percent of cases with a mortality rate ranging from twenty to forty percent. Some studies have shown marked improvement in the mortality rate of patients who survived transfer to the operating room rather than being treated surgically in the ER.
A resuscitative thoracotomy (sometimes referred to as an emergency department thoracotomy (EDT), trauma thoracotomy or, colloquially, as "cracking the chest") is a thoracotomy performed to resuscitate a major trauma patient who has sustained severe thoracic or abdominal trauma and who has entered cardiac arrest because of this. The procedure allows immediate direct access to the thoracic cavity, permitting rescuers to control hemorrhage, relieve cardiac tamponade, repair or control major injuries to the heart, lungs or thoracic vasculature, and perform direct cardiac massage or defibrillation. For most persons with thoracic trauma the procedure is not necessary; only 15% of those with thoracic injury require the procedure.
References
- ↑ Rosen 2009, p. 22
- ↑ Rosen 2009, p. 422-4
- ↑ Tintinalli JE, Kelen GD, Stapczynski JS (2004). Emergency Medicine: A Comprehensive Study Guide, ed 6. McGraw-Hill. pp. 1615–1616.
- ↑ Townsed CM Jr, Beauchamp RD, Evers BM, et al. (2008). Sabiston Textbook of Surgery: The Biological Basis of Modern Surgical Practice, ed 18. Saunders. pp. 502–504.
- ↑ Jagminas, Liudvikas (June 18, 2012). "Diagnostic Peritoneal Lavage". Medscape. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
- ↑ Root H, Hauser C, McKinley C, Lafave J, Mendiola R (1965). "Diagnostic peritoneal lavage". Surgery. 57: 633–7. PMID 14295771.
- ↑ Kim, Dennis(Narrator) (July 17, 2012). Diagnostic Peritoneal Lavage (DPL). San Diego: "The Division of Trauma/Surgical Critical Care/Burns is part of the Department of Surgery, UC San Diego Health System. Event occurs at 4:00. Archived from the original on 2021-12-19.
- ↑ Andrew B., MD Peitzman; Andrew B. Peitzman; Michael, MD Sabom; Donald M., MD Yearly; Timothy C., MD Fabian (2002). The trauma manual. Hagerstwon, MD: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. ISBN 0-7817-2641-7.