[Late splenic rupture: a risk of conservative treatment].

We report a 33 year old male admitted after a traffic accident with a painful abdomen and an open ankle fracture. An abdominal CAT scan showed a splenic laceration and free ascites. A conservative treatment was decided considering that the patient was hemodynamically stabilized. Seven days later, the patient appeared hypotense and with severe pain and was operated. During surgical intervention, a massive hemoperitoneum due to splenic bleeding from the spleen was found and a splenectomy was performed. Postoperative outcome was uneventful. The therapeutic approach to splenic traumatism ranges from splenectomy to medical treatment. The report case is an example of a complication of this later approach.