BACKGROUND: The treatment morbimortality of splenic trauma is related to the size of the lesion and to the surgeon experience. Our purpose was to verify the splenic recovery after conservative methods of treating incisional splenic lesions in dog. METHODS: Twenty male mongrel dogs weighing between 7 and 12 kg were submitted to a 3 cm deep and 5 cm long longitudinal incisions of the spleen under sodium pentabarbital anesthesia. The dogs were randomly divided into three groups: Group 1 (n = 10) - without repair (control); Group 2 (n = 5) - only splenic suture; Group 3 (n = 5) - splenic suture and omentoplasty. Repairs were performed by using running suture with 5-0 chromic catgut thread. The animals of Group 1 were followed during five (n = 5) and 28 (n = 5) days. The dogs of groups 2 and 3 were followed during 28 days. RESULTS: All animals survived uneventfully during the follow-up period, even those without treatment. The macroscopic splenic aspect did not differ among the groups. The microscopic assessment showed remnant omental tissue inside the splenic healing in Group 3. CONCLUSION: Severe incisional splenic wound in the dog may be treated conservatively. In case of operation, wound suture with or without omentoplasty is enough.
Spleen; Splenectomy; Splenectomy; Wounds and injuries
