What kinds of injuries occur in the bladder?
Extraperitoneal bladder injuries are the most common injuries of the bladder and occur in patients with blunt trauma and associated pelvic fractures. These injuries are managed conservatively with Foley catheter drainage, and patients rarely require surgery to repair such injuries. If there is a forceful blow to the abdomen when the bladder is very full, tears occur at the dome of the bladder, which is covered by the peritoneum, such that the injury can also involve the peritoneum. The leakage of urine then occurs into the peritoneal cavity and results in urinary ascites. Such injuries usually require operative management, because they do not heal with Foley catheter drainage alone.
