A case of traumatic rupture of the urinary bladder due to a fall from a chair-style ski lift

Abstract

We report our experience with an 8-year-old boy who incurred a traumatic rupture of the urinary bladder due to a fall from a chair-type ski lift. This boy felt like he needed to urinate before getting on the lift, but he did not do so. He was trembling from the sensation of needing to urinate and fell from the lift while it was at least 6 m in the air. He complained of abdominal pain, and on-site emergency physicians performed focused assessment with sonography for trauma, which showed fluid in the abdomen. He subsequently developed abdominal guarding. Enhanced abdominal computed tomography revealed a rupture of the urinary bladder. At laparotomy, two ruptures were seen along the dome of the bladder; the bladder wall was repaired in three layers. The patient was discharged with a cast on his foot for a fracture of the left heel bone on postoperative day 16.

Traumatic extraperitoneal bladder rupture in the absence of pelvic fracture in a patient with pelvic organ prolapse: A case report and review of the literature

“…Similarly, in 2019, there was a case describing seat-belt induced intraperitoneal bladder rupture following a high-impact collision between a motor vehicle and tree [21] . Additionally, in 2021, an 8-year-old boy who took a fall from a six-meter ski lift was found to have a bladder rupture due to perforations in two separate areas in the absence of a pelvic fracture [3] . Unlike the aforementioned cases where the patients suffered high-impact and high-velocity traumas, the present case describes a low-impact trauma.…”

“…Bladder rupture occurs when there is a disruption of the bladder wall resulting in the extravasation of urine into the surrounding tissues. Bladder injury can be classified as contusions (Type I), intraperitoneal injuries, (Type II), interstitial injury (Type III) extraperitoneal rupture (Type IV), or a combination of both intra- and extraperitoneal rupture (Type V) [2] , [3] . The dome of the bladder is the weakest portion of the organ and is the most susceptible to injury.…”

“…The dome of the bladder is the weakest portion of the organ and is the most susceptible to injury. Furthermore, full or distended bladders are more vulnerable to injury while empty bladders tend to be protected [3] . Intraperitoneal bladder rupture is most often the result of a horizontal tear at the dome of a fully distended bladder arising in the setting of an increased intravesicular pressure [1] , [4] , [5] .…”