Isolated complete transection of common hepatic artery in a fall accident: a case report

Blunt abdominal trauma is the most frequent external injury to the abdomen, which is rarely due to falling. However, not often does a blunt trauma cause injury to the common hepatic artery. Isolated injury of the common hepatic artery has rarely been reported in the literature. This report describes an unusual case of a falling accident from a height of 5 meters that results in complete transection of the common hepatic artery, yet all other abdominal organs are normal. The case was initially diagnosed by a Focused Assessment with Sonography in Trauma exam and confirmed with an exploratory laparotomy. The successful management would be an end-to-end anastomosis of the dissected artery. We hope we would raise awareness of such injury in order to facilitate its diagnosis and management and improve its outcome.