Influence of residual splenic tissue on the presence of vacuolated erythrocytes in splenectomized patients.

In normals without impairment of the splenic function, less than 1% of the circulating erythrocytes are vacuolated. Autotransplantation of splenic tissue (splenosis) or growth of accessory spleens may occur after splectomy. 39 patients splenectomized after traumatic rupture of the spleen were investigated by spleen Tc-scanning, employing heat-damaged autologous erythrocytes, and the splenic filter function was studied by counting the % of vacuolated erythrocytes using interference-phase-contrast microscopy. Residual splenic tissue was detected in 18 patients and in these the median % of vacuolated erythrocytes was found to be significantly lower than in patients without ectopic splenic tissue (21.0% versus 44.8%, P less than 0.01). There was, however, a marked overlap between the 2 groups. The reason for this might be that very small splenic implants are not detected by Tc-scanning.