A handlebar injury to the abdomen

Discussion Handlebar injuries have been reported to account for 8-13% of cases of blunt abdominal trauma in children, second only to falls and road traffic crashes. 1 2 After blunt abdominal trauma the spleen and liver are the most commonly injured organs, followed by the kidneys, pancreas, and duodenum. 3 4 Blunt force causes injury to intra-abdominal organs by three different mechanisms. 5 Shear forces, created by rapid deceleration, can cause organs and vascular pedicles to tear. Specific findings of retroperitoneal duodenal perforation include air bubbles along the right margin of the psoas or the upper pole of the right kidney ( fig 1 ).