Splenic haematoma and rupture, a rare complication of ventriculoperitoneal shunt

Abstract

Complications of ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunts have been well described in the literature. To our knowledge, only two cases with splenic tear have been reported to date. We report here a case of splenic haematoma and rupture caused by the distal catheter looping around the spleen, requiring urgent splenectomy for spontaneous rupture and massive haemorrhage. This complication was noted six weeks following VP shunt insertion.

Keywords:

• Ventriculoperitoneal shunt
• complications
• splenic rupture
• splenic haematoma

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.