What are the normal dimensions of the spleen. How does weight and gender affect spleen size. What methods are used to measure spleen dimensions. How does spleen size change with age. What are the implications of abnormal spleen size.

Understanding the Spleen: Function and Importance

The spleen is a vital organ tucked away behind the stomach and beneath the diaphragm. Despite its small size, it plays a crucial role in the body’s immune system and blood filtration process. The spleen acts as a sophisticated filter for blood, trapping old, damaged, or abnormal red blood cells within its intricate network of narrow passages. Meanwhile, healthy red blood cells pass through unimpeded, continuing their journey through the bloodstream.

In addition to its filtration duties, the spleen serves as a frontline defender against certain pathogens. When bacteria or viruses enter the bloodstream, the spleen, along with lymph nodes, produces lymphocytes – a type of white blood cell specialized in creating antibodies to combat infections. This dual function of blood filtration and immune support makes the spleen an indispensable part of our body’s defense mechanism.

Normal Spleen Dimensions: What’s Considered Typical?

The size of a normal, healthy spleen can vary significantly from person to person, influenced by factors such as sex, height, and age. On average, an adult spleen measures approximately:

• Length: 5 inches (12.7 cm)
• Width: 3 inches (7.6 cm)
• Thickness: 1.5 inches (3.8 cm)
• Weight: 6 ounces (170 grams)

However, these figures are not set in stone. Individual variations are common and do not necessarily indicate any underlying health issues.

How does gender affect spleen size?

Gender plays a role in determining spleen size, with women generally having smaller spleens compared to men. This difference is attributed not only to the fact that men are typically taller than women but also to their greater red cell mass. A study published in the journal Radiology highlighted this gender-based disparity in spleen dimensions.

Does height influence spleen size?

Indeed, height is a significant factor in determining spleen size. Taller individuals tend to have larger spleens compared to shorter people. This correlation between height and spleen size is observed consistently across various studies and contributes to the range of what’s considered normal spleen dimensions.

Age-Related Changes in Spleen Size

The spleen, like many organs in the body, undergoes changes in size throughout an individual’s lifetime. During childhood and adolescence, the spleen grows along with the rest of the body. However, once adulthood is reached, an interesting trend emerges – the spleen tends to shrink slightly with each passing decade.

For children up to 15 years old, researchers have established upper limits for normal spleen length based on age. Interestingly, there is relatively little difference in spleen size between boys and girls in this age group. The following table illustrates the average maximum spleen length by age:

It’s important to note that these figures represent the upper limit of normal spleen length and should not be considered as absolute values for all children in these age groups.

Measuring Spleen Size: Techniques and Considerations

Accurate measurement of spleen size is crucial for diagnosing various conditions and monitoring overall health. Several methods are employed to assess spleen dimensions, each with its own advantages and considerations.

Physical Examination

During a routine physical examination, a healthcare provider can often detect an enlarged spleen through palpation. This hands-on approach allows for a quick initial assessment, but it may not be sufficiently precise for detecting subtle changes in spleen size.

Blood Tests

While blood tests don’t directly measure spleen size, they can provide valuable information about spleen function and potential underlying conditions. A complete blood count (CBC) can reveal abnormalities in red blood cell, white blood cell, and platelet levels, which may be indicative of spleen enlargement or other related issues.

Ultrasound: The Preferred Imaging Method

Abdominal ultrasound is often the preferred method for evaluating spleen size due to its non-invasive nature, absence of radiation exposure, and ability to provide accurate measurements. During an ultrasound examination:

1. A special gel is applied to the patient’s abdomen to facilitate sound wave transmission.
2. An ultrasound “wand” or transducer is moved across the abdominal area.
3. Sound waves are emitted and their echoes are captured to create real-time images of the internal organs.
4. The length, width, and thickness of the spleen can be measured with high precision.

Ultrasound is particularly effective in measuring the length of the spleen along its central axis, which is often the most critical dimension for clinical assessment. Additionally, ultrasound can detect other abdominal conditions, making it a versatile diagnostic tool.

Splenomegaly: When the Spleen Enlarges

Splenomegaly, or an enlarged spleen, can occur due to various factors and may indicate underlying health issues. Understanding the causes, symptoms, and implications of splenomegaly is crucial for proper diagnosis and treatment.

What causes spleen enlargement?

Several conditions can lead to splenomegaly, including:

• Viral infections (e.g., mononucleosis)
• Bacterial infections (e.g., syphilis)
• Blood disorders
• Liver diseases
• Certain cancers
• Parasitic infections

In many cases, treating the underlying condition can help return the spleen to its normal size.

Symptoms and detection of splenomegaly

An enlarged spleen may cause various symptoms, including:

• Pain or discomfort in the upper left abdomen
• Feeling full quickly when eating
• Fatigue
• Anemia
• Frequent infections

Healthcare providers can often detect an enlarged spleen during a physical examination. However, imaging tests like ultrasound or CT scans may be necessary for a more precise assessment of spleen size and to investigate potential underlying causes.

Implications of Abnormal Spleen Size

While slight variations in spleen size are common and generally not cause for concern, significant deviations from normal dimensions can have important clinical implications.

Enlarged Spleen (Splenomegaly)

An enlarged spleen can indicate various underlying health issues, including:

• Infections
• Blood disorders
• Liver disease
• Certain cancers

Splenomegaly can lead to complications such as increased risk of spleen rupture, anemia, and thrombocytopenia (low platelet count). In severe cases, spleen removal (splenectomy) may be necessary.

Smaller than Normal Spleen

While less common, a spleen that is smaller than normal (sometimes referred to as a “shrunken” or “atrophied” spleen) can also be problematic. This condition may result from:

• Sickle cell disease
• Autoimmune disorders
• Certain medications
• Radiation therapy

A smaller spleen may be less effective at filtering blood and supporting the immune system, potentially increasing the risk of certain infections.

Spleen Health: Prevention and Maintenance

Maintaining a healthy spleen is crucial for overall well-being. While some factors affecting spleen size are beyond our control, there are steps we can take to support spleen health:

Lifestyle Factors

• Maintain a balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains
• Stay hydrated
• Exercise regularly
• Manage stress through relaxation techniques or meditation
• Avoid smoking and excessive alcohol consumption

Preventive Care

• Stay up-to-date with vaccinations
• Practice good hygiene to prevent infections
• Attend regular check-ups with your healthcare provider
• Seek prompt medical attention for any concerning symptoms

By adopting these habits, individuals can support their spleen health and potentially reduce the risk of spleen-related issues.

Advanced Imaging Techniques for Spleen Assessment

While ultrasound remains the primary method for assessing spleen size, other imaging techniques can provide valuable information in certain situations:

Computed Tomography (CT) Scan

CT scans offer detailed cross-sectional images of the abdomen, allowing for precise measurement of spleen dimensions. They are particularly useful when:

• Ultrasound results are inconclusive
• There’s a need to assess surrounding organs and structures
• Investigating suspected tumors or abscesses within the spleen

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

MRI provides high-resolution images without radiation exposure. It’s beneficial for:

• Detailed evaluation of spleen structure
• Assessing blood flow within the spleen
• Investigating complex cases where other imaging methods are inconclusive

Nuclear Medicine Studies

Techniques like technetium-99m sulfur colloid scintigraphy can assess spleen function in addition to size. These studies are particularly useful for:

• Evaluating spleen function in blood disorders
• Detecting accessory spleens
• Assessing splenic tissue in patients who have undergone partial splenectomy

The choice of imaging technique depends on the specific clinical situation, patient factors, and the information needed for diagnosis or treatment planning.

Spleen Size in Special Populations

Certain populations may have unique considerations when it comes to spleen size and function:

Athletes

Some studies have suggested that endurance athletes may have slightly larger spleens compared to the general population. This adaptation is thought to be related to increased blood volume and improved cardiovascular efficiency. However, the difference is usually not clinically significant and should not be confused with pathological splenomegaly.

Individuals with Sickle Cell Disease

People with sickle cell disease often experience functional asplenia or autosplenectomy, where the spleen becomes fibrotic and shrinks over time due to repeated sickling crises. This can lead to an increased risk of certain infections, necessitating special preventive measures and monitoring.

Pregnancy

During pregnancy, some women may experience a slight increase in spleen size due to increased blood volume and hormonal changes. This is generally considered a normal physiological change and typically resolves after delivery. However, significant splenomegaly during pregnancy should be evaluated to rule out underlying conditions.

High-Altitude Dwellers

Individuals living at high altitudes may have slightly larger spleens as an adaptation to the lower oxygen levels. This enlarged spleen can help store more red blood cells, aiding in oxygen delivery to tissues. Again, this adaptation is usually within normal physiological limits and should not be confused with pathological splenomegaly.

Understanding these population-specific variations is crucial for healthcare providers when interpreting spleen measurements and assessing overall health in these groups.

Normal Spleen Size Depends on Weight and Gender

Overview

Your spleen is a small but hard-working organ hidden behind your stomach and under your diaphragm. It acts as a filter for your blood. Old, damaged, or abnormal red blood cells are caught in a maze of narrow tunnels within the spleen. Healthy red blood cells easily pass through the spleen and continue to circulate in your bloodstream.

The spleen can also filter out certain bacteria or viruses from your blood in support of the body’s immune system. When a disease-causing microorganism enters the bloodstream, your spleen and lymph nodes produce lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell capable of making antibodies to fight infections.

Unlike most other organs in your body, your spleen changes in size throughout your life — usually in response to illness or injury. A viral infection, such as mononucleosis, or a bacterial infection, such as syphilis, are among the conditions that can lead to an enlarged spleen.

The size of a normal, healthy spleen can vary considerably from person to person. Your sex and height can also affect its size. In general, an adult spleen is about 5 inches long, 3 inches wide, 1.5 inches thick, and weighs about 6 ounces.

Women tend to have smaller spleens than men, and taller people tend to have larger spleens than shorter people. In a study in the journal Radiology, researchers suggested that aside from men generally being taller than women, men also typically have greater red cell mass than women.

Your spleen, like the rest of your body, grows with age. Once you reach adulthood, however, your spleen tends to shrink slightly with each passing decade. The following is a list of the upper limit of normal spleen length by age up to 15 years. For boys and girls, there is relatively little difference in size, according to a study published in the American Journal of Roentgenology. The average spleen length by age was up to:

During a physical examination, your doctor can usually tell if your spleen is enlarged. A blood test to check your levels of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets may also be ordered to help diagnose the cause of a spleen enlargement.

Imaging tests, including ultrasound, help measure the size of your spleen and whether it’s crowding your other organs.

An abdominal ultrasound is often preferred for evaluating the spleen because it’s easy to do and doesn’t require any radiation. Ultrasound uses sound waves to create images of inside the body on a computer screen. An ultrasound “wand” is rubbed on the outside of the belly, which is coated with a special gel. This gel helps transmit the sound waves through the skin and to the parts inside the body.

Ultrasound can usually measure the length of the spleen along a center line (axis) accurately. It can also measure the width and thickness of the spleen, which can typically tell the doctor whether the organ is abnormally large or small. In most cases, however, the concern is about an enlarged spleen.

An abdominal ultrasound can help detect other conditions, too. Some of them include:

• abnormal liver function
• kidney stones
• gallstones
• enlargement of other organs, such as the liver or gallbladder
• abdominal aortic aneurysm (bulge in the main artery that supplies blood to most of the body)
• tumors or other suspicious growths anywhere in the abdominal area

Slight variances in spleen size are common and not a cause for concern. However, if you suspect your spleen is enlarged or you’re having any organ-related problems, see a doctor soon. If an infection is causing this temporary enlargement of the spleen, the sooner you get it diagnosed and treated, the better.

Treating the underlying cause of your spleen growth will usually cause it to return to a normal, healthy size. In very serious cases of spleen dysfunction, the organ can be removed. You will be at greater risk for infections, but that will only mean it’s even more important to keep up to date with vaccinations and other preventive steps, such as washing your hands thoroughly and regularly or avoiding people who may have a contagious infection.

Ultrasonography of the spleen – radlines.org

Author:
Mikael Häggström ^{[notes 1]}

Contents

• 1 Planning
  • 1.1 Indication
• 2 Evaluation
  • 2.1 Size
  • 2.2 Focal changes
• 3 Report
• 4 Notes
• 5 References

Planning

Indication

Ultrasonography of the spleen is included as a general screening of the upper abdomen, or when specifically requested in the referral.

Evaluation

Size

Maximum length of spleen on abdominal ultrasonography.

A measurement of spleen size is a standard procedure as part of a liver exam, since splenomegaly is a sign of portal hypertension.

Suggested cutoffs are:^[1][2]

• Normal (not splenomegaly): the maximum length is less than 11 cm
• Moderate splenomegaly: the maximum length is between 11–20 cm
• Severe splenomegaly: the maximum length is greater than 20 cm

90% confidence intervals of maximum lengths in the normal population have lower limits between 6. 4 cm (in short women) and 10.2 cm (in tall men), and upper limits between 12.0 and 14.4 cm (respectively):^[3]

Age	Cutoff[4]
3 months	6. 0 cm
6 months	6.5 cm
12 months	7.0 cm
2 years	8.0 cm
4 years	9.0
6 years	9.5 cm
8 years	10.0 cm
10 years	11.0 cm
12 years	11.5 cm
15 years	12.0 cm for girls 13.0 cm for boys

For children, the cutoffs for splenomegaly are given in this table, when measuring the greatest length of the spleen between its dome and its tip, in the coronal plane through its hilum while breathing quietly.^[4]

Focal changes

If the referral mentions the spleen, it is generally appropriate to scan the volume of it for any focal changes, mainly cysts or tumors.

Report

• Even absence of enlargement. If enlarged, state both grade (such as moderate) and maximum length in a number
• If checked, even absence of focal changes.

See also: General notes on reporting

Notes

1. ↑ For a full list of contributors, see article history. Creators of images are attributed at the image description pages, seen by clicking on the images. See Radlines:Authorship for details.

References

1. ↑ Neetu Radhakrishnan. Splenomegaly. Medscape. Updated Apr. 2012 (referring the classification system to Poulin et al.
2. ↑ Page 1964 in: Florian Lang (2009). Encyclopedia of Molecular Mechanisms of Disease
   . Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 9783540671367. 
3. ↑ Chow, Kai Uwe; Luxembourg, Beate; Seifried, Erhard; Bonig, Halvard (2016). “Spleen Size Is Significantly Influenced by Body Height and Sex: Establishment of Normal Values for Spleen Size at US with a Cohort of 1200 Healthy Individuals
   “. Radiology 279 (1): 306–313. doi:10.1148/radiol.2015150887. ISSN 0033-8419. 
4. ↑ ^{4. 04.1}Rosenberg, H K; Markowitz, R I; Kolberg, H; Park, C; Hubbard, A; Bellah, R D (1991). “Normal splenic size in infants and children: sonographic measurements
   “. American Journal of Roentgenology 157 (1): 119–121. doi:10.2214/ajr.157.1.2048509. ISSN 0361-803X. 

Ultrasound of the spleen

Ultrasound of the SPLEEN

The spleen performs several functions in the human body. It destroys obsolete blood cells and platelets, and also converts hemoglobin into bilirubin (a bile pigment, one of the intermediate breakdown products of hemoglobin in the spleen, liver and bone marrow) and hemosiderin (a dark yellow pigment consisting of iron oxide, formed during the breakdown of hemoglobin) . The spleen is the main source of circulating lymphocytes, a reservoir of erythrocytes, which, in a critical situation, re-enter the bloodstream. In addition, it acts as a filter for bacteria, protozoa and foreign particles, and also produces antibodies.

Primary diseases of the spleen are quite rare, but secondarily it is affected more often than any other organ. So, there are cases of congenital absence of the spleen. Deviations in its size, shape and structure are also possible, for example, the development of additional shares. Sometimes several spleens are revealed. The spleen can be “wandering” due to the weakness of the ligaments that fix the position of the organ. Such a spleen can move freely in the abdominal cavity (this phenomenon is observed more often in women than in men). Leukemia, the presence of blood clots in the cavity of the heart, a violation of the blood coagulation system, some infections can provoke the occurrence of a spleen infarction, requiring, depending on the situation, hospitalization of the patient. Volvulus of the spleen (twisting of the legs of its organ) leads to a violation of its blood circulation and requires surgical intervention. A splenic infarction, typhoid fever, or subacute bacterial endocarditis can cause abscesses, chronic, painless processes with a tendency to self-heal. Rarely, but still there are epithelial and cysts of the spleen caused by echinococcus. Sometimes cysts can be the result of an organ injury.

Splenomegaly, or enlargement of the spleen, may be associated with enlarged lymph nodes, ascites (fluid in the abdomen), jaundice, leukopenia (decreased white blood cells), fever, enlarged liver, or severe anemia. It is observed in many cardiovascular diseases; with many infectious diseases – malaria, typhoid fever, smallpox, measles, syphilis, meningitis, scarlet fever, etc.; with blood diseases – leukemia, hemolytic jaundice, chronic hemolytic anemia, usually congenital.

Sometimes an enlarged spleen occurs in Hodgkin’s disease (lymphogranulomatosis), in chronic myeloid leukemia (diseases of the blood system). Metabolic disorders, especially fat metabolism, are also often accompanied by splenomegaly. Many liver diseases affect the condition of the spleen. First of all, this applies to Bunty’s syndrome, in which cirrhosis of the liver is accompanied by congestive splenomegaly and anemia. With a hereditary disease – Gaucher’s disease – there is a violation of the metabolism of fats and splenomegaly.

Since splenomegaly is only a manifestation of some other disease, treatment should be directed to the primary cause, which can be established by a comprehensive diagnostic examination, in which an important place is occupied by ultrasound diagnostics.

INDICATIONS FOR ULTRASOUND OF THE SPLEEN

• suspected malformations
• spleen injury
• infectious diseases (typhoid, sepsis, acute viral hepatitis, syphilis, infectious mononucleosis)
• chronic liver disease
• leukemia
• benign and malignant tumors of the spleen

HOW TO PREPARE FOR USING THE SPLEEN

Ultrasound of the spleen, like many ultrasound examinations of internal organs, requires some preparation. Ultrasound of the spleen is performed on an empty stomach (the previous meal should take place no earlier than 6-8 hours before the study), in the morning. Legumes, raw vegetables, black bread, milk are excluded from the diet for 1-2 days. To exclude gas formation, we recommend that the patient take activated charcoal 1 tablet 3 times a day, possibly other enterosorbents, festal. If the patient has diabetes, a light breakfast (warm tea, dried white bread) is acceptable.

The purpose of ultrasound of the spleen is to identify volumetric indicators (measurement of size) of the organ, to determine diffuse or local changes in structures, to identify formations (tumors, cysts), their characteristics, topography. Ultrasound of the spleen is necessarily recommended for patients with suspected diseases of the liver, hematopoietic and lymphatic systems, with suspicion of injury to the spleen.

The study is absolutely painless, takes 5-10 minutes and has no contraindications. Ultrasound of the spleen, performed by a highly qualified certified specialist, has a high diagnostic value and allows timely detection of many insidious diseases of the spleen, such as malformations of the spleen, heart attacks, torsion of the leg, abscesses, cysts, degenerative processes and neoplasms in the organ, splenomegaly, etc.

Specialists of the ultrasound department of the Medical Center “Akademik” in Krasnodar will perform an ultrasound of the spleen quickly and efficiently and will give you the necessary explanations for the study. Also, our specialists will be happy to offer you an individual scheme for the treatment of diseases of the spleen based on the results of anamnesis, ultrasound examination, other laboratory and diagnostic methods of examination.

Sign up for an ultrasound of the spleen at the Medical Center “Akademik”, Krasnodar

you can call +7 (861) 991-28-89

or via website

Make an appointment

Comparison of liver and spleen elastometry | Morozov

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