Computed tomography and ultrasonography in splenic infarction.

The computed tomographic (CT) findings in eight patients with splenic infarction are described and correlated with ultrasound (US) in three. The diagnosis was proven in four by splenectomy or autopsy, in three by comparison with CT, having been obtained shortly before infarction, and in two by angiography. In four patients the infarct occurred as a result of hepatic or splenic artery embolization. The CT features of infarction may be difficult to differentiate from those due to trauma, inflammation or tumor, and include either a diffuse, a well circumscribed or an irregularly marginated area of low density within the spleen. Classical wedge-shaped defects are occasionally seen in the periphery of spleen. The ultrasonographic feature is usually that of a hypoechoic or an anechoic area in the spleen. In one patient, it became necessary to perform an ultrasound guided aspiration biopsy to rule out splenic abscess.