Spontaneous hematoma of the rectus abdominal wall in pregnancy

Abstract

AbstractRectus sheath hematoma is an uncommon and often clinically misdiagnosed cause of abdominal pain. We report such a case of a 42-year-old woman who developed an abdominal-wall hematoma at 32 weeks of gestation. Initially, she was suspected as having a complicated ovarian tumor associated with pregnancy, because of the intense abdominal pain. Both ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging proved to be useful in diagnosing rectus sheath hematoma. A conservative management was applied for the rectus sheath hematoma and the patient recovered uneventfully. Although it is a very rare entity, rectus sheath hematoma should be included in the differential diagnosis of every pregnant patient who presents with abdominal pain.