SPLENIC RUPTURE is the most frequent serious intraabdominal injury following blunt abdominal trauma.3,4,6,10Delayed splenic rupture accounts for up to one third of all splenic injuries.5,8,9,10Immediate or delayed splenic hemorrhage is rapidly fatal and is an acute surgical emergency. The mortality of simple splenic rupture is 1%.1That of delayed splenic rupture is 10%. It is our purpose to review the literature on delayed splenic rupture and to report six additional cases. It is hoped that a greater awareness of this problem will provide for earlier diagnosis and decrease the mortality of delayed splenic rupture. Material The hospital records of the Fifth (Harvard) Surgical Service at the Boston City Hospital for the years 1956 to 1965 and the Faulkner Hospital from 1954 to 1965 were reviewed. There were 52 cases of traumatic rupture of the spleen. Six of these were delayed splenic ruptures. Report of Cases

Department of Surgery, Harvard Medical School, and Sears Surgical Laboratory, Boston City Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts