Spontaneous hepatic rupture: 13-year experience of a single center

Background Spontaneous hepatic rupture is a rare clinical event associated with various pathologies of the liver. Most series to date reported the incidence and characteristics of a single etiology. Methods Data were collected for all patients admitted with spontaneous hepatic rupture from 1995 to 2007. Results Ten patients met the study criteria. Hepatocellular adenoma was the cause of the rupture in six female patients, in their second to fourth decade. In the remaining patients, the ruptures were because of hepatocellular carcinoma in two, metastatic gastrointestinal stromal tumor in one, and HELLP syndrome (hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelet count) in one. Nine out of 10 patients were treated surgically. Conclusion Spontaneous hepatic rupture requires a high index of suspicion for a correct and timely diagnosis. Outcome is potentially grave and greatly depends on the underlying condition. Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol 22: 997-1000 (C) 2010 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.