S36.03: Rupture of spleen with significant parenchymal depth

You have injured your spleen.

There are many vital organs in your abdomen. When the abdomen is injured, these organs may get damaged too. The abdomen can be injured as a result of an accident or a blow, for example.

When spleen tissue has been damaged, there may be a range of symptoms. The symptoms depend on the extent of the damage. For example, you may have abdominal pains. You sometimes also have pain in the left shoulder. You may feel nauseous or need to vomit.

A damaged organ may also bleed. Sometimes blood collects in or around the organ. If there is bleeding in the spleen, blood may also collect between the capsule and the spleen tissue. Then the abdomen sometimes swells up. If a lot of blood has collected in this area, the capsule around the spleen can tear. If the bleeding is heavy, you can have circulation problems. This can sometimes be life-threatening.

The spleen tissue is well supplied with blood. The spleen tissue is surrounded by a capsule.

In your case the capsule has torn away from the spleen. In the process, spleen tissue has also been damaged. The spleen is on the top left side of the abdomen. Old blood cells are broken down in the spleen. Furthermore, defense cells are stored. If the defense cells are needed, they are then released from the spleen into the blood.