Spleen

spleen is bordered ______ by the left kidney, splenic flexure of the colon, pancreatic tail

medially

normally the spleen is not _______ by physical examination (about the size of a clenched fist)

palpable

rare locations for accessory spleens include ____ and ____

pelvis scrotum

The spleens major function is to filter the ___________ blood

peripheral

Covered by ________, with the exception of the hilum

peritoneum

A normal variant; ______ is when there are multiple small spleens; usually two larger splenic structures and many smaller accessory-type spleens located along the greater curvature of the stomach and which may extend into the right RUQ

polysplenia

The _____ _____ exits the hilum and courses along the gastrolienal ligament to its confluence with the SMV to form the PV

splenic vein

The most common reason in imaging the spleen is to detect for ______

splenomegaly (enlarged spleen)

Spleen is bordered anteriorly by the ____

stomach

Accessory spleens other names are:

supernumerary spleens or splenunculi

most common approach to visualizing the spleen is to maintain the patient in the____ position and place the transducer in the coronal plane of section posteriorly in one of the lower left intercostal spaces

supine

Anything more than ____--____cm in length is a concern for splenomegaly.

12-13cm measure superior to inferior

The spleen has ___ components joined at the hilum

2

at least __ images of the spleen should be recorded in the longitudinal and transverse planes

2

Spleen AP dimension should measure between __-__cm. thick

3-4

transverse measurement (lateral to medial) should measure ___ cm. in width

7

A normal variant; ________ spleens results from failure of fusion of separate splenic masses forming on the dorsal mesogastrium

accessory

____ spleens may be mistaken for lymphadenopathy or pancreatic, renal, or suprarenal masses

accessory

______ spleens are quite common and have no clinical significance

accessory

_______ spleen is found in up to 10% to 30% of the general population

accessory

typically, when a splenectomy is performed the ______ _____ is also removed

accessory spleen

A normal variant; ________ is a failure in normal embryogenesis that leads to the congenital absence of the spleen

aplasia

advance atrophy is sometimes referred to as________

autosplenectomy

Active in ____ formation (hematopoiesis), during the initial part of fetal life

blood

easiest to scan intercostally from a _____ approach

coronal

on transverse scans it has a crescent appearance usually with a large ____ component

medial

The spleen defenses against______

disease

_______ increases with enlargement

echogenicity

____ spleens may be congenital or related to trauma; regardless of the cause, they are prone to torsion and infarction

ectopic

______ spleen occurs when supporting ligaments are dysfunctional or lax

ectopic

pts may have an asymptomatic abdominal or pelvic mass if they have an _____ spleen

ectopic

when the spleen enlarges, the accessory spleens may _____

enlarge

Spleen is essential to life and cannot be removed without adverse effects. T/F?

false. is not essential to life

always look at the left pleural space to see if ____ is present

fluid

vast majority are small rounded masses, located near the ____ and has echogenicity identical to the adjacent spleen

hilum

accessory spleens are most often near the _____ or _____ border of the spleen

hilum inferior

Spleen should have a fine _______ low-level echo pattern, as is seen within the liver parenchyma

homogenous

if accessory splenic tissue is present and a splenectomy is performed, the accessory tissues undergo _______

hypertrophy

Spleen is an ____________ organ which lies in the LUQ (left hypochondrium)

intraperitoneal

Spleen is generally smooth in contour, with a convex superior _____ surface and a concave inferomedial surface

lateral

____ axis should demonstrate the Lt hemi diaphragm, the superior and inferior margins, and the UP of the LK.

long

_____ axis of the spleen is measured from its superior to inferior

long

Length should be taken in the ____________ plane at the midaxillary line

longitudinal

Part of the reticuloendothelial system and is composed primarily of ____ tissue

lymph

spleen is bordered _________ by the diaphragm, pleura, left lung and ribs

posteriorly

The spleen is a _____ and a ______

reservoir filter

_____ _____ is a tortuous vessel that travels horizontally along the superior border of the pancreas and divides into two major branches before separating into several minor arteries within the spleen

splenic artery

AP dimension measures the _____ of an organ

thickness

Width and thickness should be measured in the _____ plane at the level of the ziphoid

transverse

( accessory spleens) these islands of tissue are usually small and measure between 1.5 -2 cm. more than one accessory spleen may be present. T/F?

true

A normal variant; aplasia is a rare condition is commonly associated with other lethal malformations and asplenic individuals are known to be at increased risk for infection with encapsulated bacteria. T/F?

true

A normal variant; partial development of spleen may also occur and is associated with situs inversus and cardiovascular anomalies. T/F?

true

Rarely the primary site of disease, although it is often affected by systemic disease processes. T/F?

true

Spleen is the largest organ of the reticuloendothelial system. T/F?

true

The spleen removes macrophages, stores platelets, and produces blood cells during fetal life (hematopoiesis). T/F?

true

although the spleen is rarely the primary site of disease-as the largest secondary lymphoid organ of the reticuloendothelial system-it is often involved in inflammatory, hematopoietic, and metabolic disorders and is associated with immune and hematologic diseases. T/F?

true

more superiorly, on transverse scanning, spleen has a typical fat "inverted comma" shape with a thin component extending anteriorly and another component extending medially, either superior to or adjacent to upper pole of the left kidney. T/F?

true

nonvisualization in its normal location may be due to one of several conditions, which is, asplenia syndrome, polysplenia syndrome, traumatic fragmentation of the spleen, or the wandering spleen. T/F?

true

on longitudinal, the superior component extends more medially than the inferior component. T/F?

true

severe abdominal pain and splenic rupture can occur with torsion and splenic volvulus. T/F?

true

the echogenicity of the parenchyma is higher in the spleen than the liver (smooth, medium gray). T/F?

true

with experience, the sonographer may be able to simply "eyeball" the spleen to determine whether it is enlarged. T/F?

true

you should include at least one coronal view of the spleen and the upper pole of the left kidney. T/F?

true

Other names for an ectopic spleen are:

wandering, aberrant spleen, floating spleen, splenic ptosis

transverse dimension measures the ______of an organ

width