Journal of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
-
J R Coll Surg Edinb · Aug 1996
Non-operative management of stab wounds to the abdomen with omental evisceration.
A consecutive series of 14 patients with anterior abdominal stab wounds and omental evisceration treated at the Kingston Public Hospital Jamaica over a 3-year period is presented. During this period 223 patients with abdominal stab wounds were seen of which 66 had omental evisceration. ⋯ Serial physical examination was the method used to select patients for conservative surgical management with the exclusion of patients with deteriorating clinical signs or peritonitis. Omental evisceration through an abdominal stab wound in a patient with stable clinical signs and without evidence of peritonitis is not an absolute indication for exploratory laparotomy.