Avoiding splenectomy in the treatment of children with splenic injury.

We report on 92 consecutive patients with traumatic rupture of the spleen. Half of them were treated before October 1978, half of them after that date. The aim of this report is: 1) to describe our experience of splenic rupture in children with particular regard to trauma, clinical course, and pattern of associated injuries; 2) to give a detailed description of the clinical course to be expected when non-operative management is applied; 3) to discuss the possible risks of non-operative treatment; and 4) to report on our experience of splenic repair operations