What are the side effects of splenectomy?

After splenectomy, you must pay attention to more careful care, because some complications are prone to occur, such as bleeding, subphrenic infection or abscess, and postoperative acute pancreatitis and other complications, some of which may also cause splenic phlebitis.

1. Abdominal complications

① Bleeding: Delayed intra-abdominal bleeding after surgery often occurs in patients with hypersplenism and poor liver function. For these patients, measures should be taken before and after surgery to improve coagulation function in order to prevent and treat bleeding. ②Subdiaphragmatic infection or abscess: mostly secondary to patients with subdiaphragmatic blood accumulation. If the body temperature rises again 3 to 4 days after the operation, you should be highly vigilant and have a timely and detailed examination. If an abscess has formed, it should be incised and drained promptly. ③ Postoperative acute pancreatitis: Although rare, it is a very serious condition and is often caused by intraoperative injury. For patients with severe upper abdominal or left upper abdominal pain, pancreatic amylase should be measured in time to clarify the diagnosis and provide timely treatment.

2. Pulmonary complications

Atelectasis and pneumonia are most common, especially in the elderly. If there is reactive effusion in the left pleural cavity, subdiaphragmatic infection should be suspected, but it may also be caused by pulmonary complications. Thoracentesis should be performed promptly to drain fluid for further diagnosis and treatment.

3. Other complications

① Splenic phlebitis: After the splenic vein is ligated during surgery, the proximal end becomes a blind end, so thrombosis is very likely to occur. If infection occurs, symptoms such as high fever, abdominal pain, and sepsis often occur, so attention should be paid to prevention and treatment. Splenic phlebitis is often the main cause of persistent high fever after splenectomy, but care must also be taken to exclude the possibility that the patient's immunity will be reduced and he or she may be susceptible to infection after splenectomy. ② Postoperative jaundice and hepatic coma: They often occur in patients with cirrhosis and generally have a poor prognosis. You should be vigilant and take timely prevention and treatment.