WORLD JOURNAL OF ADVANCE
HEALTHCARE RESEARCH

Read Mahmood Faraj*, Mohend Abbass Al-Shalah and Baraa Hameed Alsaqer

ABSTRACT

Background: Abdominal trauma is a major contributor to trauma-related injuries and fatalities, with bluntabdominal trauma accounting for more than half of these cases. Aim of the Study: This study aims to evaluatecases of blunt abdominal trauma in terms of causes, affected age groups, commonly injured organs, the type ofmanagement provided—either surgical or conservative—and the outcomes of each approach. Patients &Methods: This cross-sectional study included patients admitted to the surgical wards of Al-Hilla TeachingHospital between December 2014 and June 2015 after sustaining abdominal trauma. Patients underwent detailedhistory-taking, clinical examination, and appropriate investigations. Once diagnosed with blunt abdominal trauma,they were monitored for treatment course—either surgical intervention or conservative management—andoutcomes were recorded. Results: Blunt abdominal trauma was most common in children aged 1–10 (27.3%) andyoung adults aged 21–30 (22.2%). The sample was 81.8% male, with a 5:1 male-to-female ratio. Leading causewas car accidents (39.4%), followed by falls from height (22.2%). Most patients (86.9%) had no chronicconditions, however hypertension (6.1%) and diabetes (4.0%) were prevalent. Most damaged organs were thespleen (24.2%), colon (20.3%), and liver (11.1%). Patients had 63.6% associated injuries, with chest injuriesbeing the most common (28.3%). Surgical intervention was undertaken in 56.6% of patients, with 89.29%recovery and 10.71% death. Conservative therapy was employed in 43.4% of patients, with 83.72% recovery and16.28% death. In 35 instances (78%), FAST ultrasonography detected true positives with 83% sensitivity.Abdominal CT scans exhibited 94% sensitivity and true positives in all 30 cases. Conclusions: Car accidents arethe leading cause of blunt abdominal trauma. While CT scan remains the most sensitive diagnostic tool, bothsurgical and conservative treatments show comparable outcomes in terms of mortality.