The spleen, which is a blood-forming organ, is elongated oval and is located in the abdominal cavity, in the area of the 9th and 11th ribs of the left flank. The spleen is a biological filter of blood. It removes foreign elements (bacteria) from the blood and damaged erythrocytes.
Some blood disorders (eg, thrombocytopenic purpura, some hereditary hemolytic anemia) impair spleen function. At this time, the spleen is surgically removed. It is good that each of us knows enough about the spleen and some of the diseases that occur in it. For example, a child may be born without a spleen, and in some cases there may be two or more spleens.
People who are born without a spleen or who have had their spleen removed for some reason (especially young children) are more susceptible to many bacterial infections. Like other organs in the body, the spleen is often affected.
Spleen infarction. The most common splenic infarction is caused by embolism or splenic vascular thrombosis. Splenic infarction can be hemorrhagic or ischemic, single-foci or multiple-foci. Inflammatory foci in the spleen are usually small. Splenic infarction is most often seen in bacterial and septic endocarditis, vascular disease, mitral stenosis, trauma, and infectious diseases.
In small infarcts, the affected part of the spleen is gradually absorbed and scarred. However, the infarct area may soften and a false cyst may form. Minor heart attacks are usually asymptomatic. When there is a large infarction in the spleen, there is a sudden pain in the left subcostal area, body temperature rises to 39 degrees, nausea, intestinal paresis. Symptoms of an abscess appear when the infarct is purulent.
Spleen infarction can be treated conservatively (with medication). The patient should lie down. He is prescribed antibiotics, anti-inflammatory and painkillers. When the infarct becomes purulent and an abscess develops, a splenectomy is performed, in which the spleen is surgically removed.
Torsion or displacement… Spleen torsion is one of the most dangerous complications that can occur in people with a misaligned (displaced) spleen. Splenic torsion is less common. It is more common in women, but is sometimes reported in men and even children. When splenic torsion develops rapidly, there is severe pain, vomiting, and sometimes loss of consciousness. In slow-growing splenic torsion, the symptoms are less severe. There are different levels of pain, flatulence.
When the spleen is twisted, the spleen is surgically removed.
May cause abscess. Spleen abscess is observed in 0,5-1% of cases. Abscesses in the spleen can be of different sizes, single-foci or multi-foci. An abscess affects the entire spleen or part of it. Small, multi-focal abscesses may enlarge and merge into a purulent ulcer.
In most cases, an infection of the spleen through the veins and arteries results in a splenic abscess. The infection can be transmitted through septic, inflammatory and purulent foci in the body. For example, postpartum sepsis, ulcerative endocarditis, osteomyelitis, infectious diseases, echinococcosis can lead to infection.
In a splenic abscess, the patient has a fever, tremors, and excruciating pain under the left rib. The pain increases as the patient moves. Therefore, the patient tries not to move. Spleen asbestos is treated surgically.
Cysts and tumors. Cysts in the spleen can be true or false, single or multiple, parasitic or non-parasitic. Parasitic cysts pass without any symptoms during development. Since non-parasitic cysts also show no signs, a person may never know that there is a cyst in the spleen. As the size of the cyst increases, so does the spleen. This causes pain in the spleen.
There are two types of tumors in the spleen (carcinoma and benign tumor). Symptoms appear only after the tumor in the spleen begins to grow. This causes pain in the abdomen, left subcostal area, and the left side of the shoulder. If the sarcoma (spleen tumor) is enlarged, severe symptoms of poisoning (vomiting, persistent nausea, fever) may occur.
