[Hepatic injuries. Surgical treatment experience].

Purpose: To evaluate the results of the surgical treatment of hepatic injuries in our institution for liver injuries.
Patients and Methods: One hundred seventy four patients who underwent operations between January 1986-December 1999 in Atatürk University Medical School, Emergency Service were reviewed retrospectively.
Results: 135 patients were male (77.5%). The mean age was 25.4 (range 3-84). Sixty three patients (36.3%) had only hepatic injuries and the others had co-existing abdominal organ injury [62 patients (35.7%) had one organ, 29 (16.7%) had two, 17 (9.7%) had three, 2 (1.1%) had four, and 1 (0.5%) had 5 organ injuries]. Five patients (2.8%) had inferior vena cava and 1 (0.5%) had vena porta injuries. One hundred seven patients (61.4%) had blunt, 44 (25.3%) had stab wound and 23 (13.3%) had gunshot injuries. Management was simple suture in 104 patient (60%), primary suture + surgical cell patching in 52 (29.8%), hepatectomy (5 right hepatectomy, 5 non anatomic hepatectomy) in 10 (5.7%), perihepatic packing in 4 (2.3%), primary suture + omental patch in 2 (1.1%), primary suture + arterial ligation in 2 (1.1%). Eleven patients (16.4%) in penetrating trauma group "Penetrating Abdominal Trauma Index" (PATI) score were higher than 25. Fever was the most common complaint postoperatively (5%). Three patients (1.7%) underwent reoperation. Twenty-six patients (14.9%) which one of them ware died. Died in the postoperative periods, 23 (13.2%) had blunt and 3 (1.7%) had penetrating traumas.
Conclusion: Liver trauma still has high mortality rate injuries are very momentous. Especially blunt trauma related hepatic.