Visceral and Solid Organ Trauma

Care for the trauma patient requires a multidisciplinary approach with collaborative involvement between the emergency department, trauma service, interventional radiology (IR), and numerous other surgical subspecialties. IR has an established and integrated role in the nonoperative management of trauma patients. Injuries related to abdominal trauma span a wide range of severity with a variety of clinical presentations and radiologic findings. Though traumatic injury to the solid organs of the abdomen historically necessitated surgical management, a significant shift to nonoperative strategies has occurred over the past several decades. Nonoperative management (NOM) aims for preservation of the affected organ while avoiding morbidity related to major surgery. Transarterial embolization (TAE) for injury to the spleen, liver, and kidney has become an important part of nonoperative management in hemodynamically stable patients, achieving hemostasis while preserving viable tissue within the injured organ. Via specific and selective intervention, TAE has also emerged as an important adjunct for management of ongoing hemorrhage in postoperative trauma patients.