Nonsurgical drainage of splenic abscess.

The mortality associated with intraabdominal abscess remains high despite modern surgical methods and antibiotics. Draingae of abscesses of the abdomen, retroperitoneum, pelvis, pancreatic pseudocyst, mediastinum, and lung may be treated effectively by percutaneous catheter placement. In several reports of percutaneous abdominal abscess drainage, only three cases of splenic abscess drainage have been reported. The authors have recently drained two splenic abscesses with the aid of computed tomography (CT) and emphasize several advantages of the percutaneous guided approach.