<< Chapter < Page Chapter >> Page >

This 40-year-old woman complained of worsening epigastric pain of five days’ duration. On examination, she had hypotension, aboard-like abdomen, and extensive ecchymoses over her right loin.

21. hemorrhagic pancreatitis

Emergency celiotomy disclosed a boggy pancreas, fat necrosis of the omentum, and reddish-brown peritoneal fluid. The ecchymoticdiscoloration of her loin—Turner’s sign—is not specific for pancreatitis. In the absence of trauma or blood disorders, it is a manifestation of retroperitonealor intraabdominal hemorrhage.

The image shown displays another indication of retroperitoneal hemorrhage—ecchymotic patches on the anterolateral surface ofone or both thighs just below the inguinal ligament (Fox’s sign). The discoloration (arrows) presumably results from bloody fluid trackingextraperitoneally along the fascia of the psoas and iliacus muscles, becoming subcutaneous in the upper thigh.

Get Jobilize Job Search Mobile App in your pocket Now!

Get it on Google Play Download on the App Store Now




Source:  OpenStax, Images of memorable cases: 50 years at the bedside. OpenStax CNX. Dec 08, 2008 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col10449/1.7
Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google Inc.

Notification Switch

Would you like to follow the 'Images of memorable cases: 50 years at the bedside' conversation and receive update notifications?

Ask