Splenic abscess at Siriraj Hospital, Thailand.

Splenic abscess is an unusual disease and may be presented either as a localized area of infection in the spleen or as a part of generalized sepsis. Population-based autopsy studies have established the incidence of splenic abscess at between 0.2-0.7 per cent. An eleven-year retrospective study of cases of splenic abscess treated at Siriraj hospital, a total of 9 cases, is presented. Pseudomonas pseudomallei is the most frequent causative agent, found in one-third of the cases, especially if the patient is thalassemic or a resident in the Northeastern part of the country. Thalassemia is also the leading predisposing condition of this malady with the incidence of 33 per cent. There are some differences in the presenting clinical features in Thai patients compared with those reported in the literature. Splenectomy was performed in all but one who died of leukemia preoperatively. The mortality rate of this disease in this series is 11 per cent and we recommend splenectomy under antibiotic coverage as soon as the diagnosis of splenic abscess has been confirmed.