Spleen is located on the left side of the stomach well beneath the rib cage. It is a small soft organ performing several functions for your body. Spleen roughly measures the size of your fist but when it gets enlarged it can grow up in size pressing the stomach and liver.
Functions of Spleen :
Spleen is responsible for eliminating the dead blood cells. Its role is to produce white blood cells which plays major role in fighting bacteria and virus. Whenever there is infection in the body these white blood cells are produced in excess by the spleen. Spleen acts as a warehouse for storing red blood cells and platelets which is responsible for clotting of blood.
When the spleen gets enlarged it may not be able to carry out these functions properly. When the abnormal dead red blood cells cannot be filtered it enters into the bloodstream causing potential health hazard. When it fails to release red blood cells and platelets it can eventually get clogged up in the spleen making it enlarged. This in turn can damage other vital organs in the neighborhood.
Symptoms Of Enlarged Spleen :
- It will not produce any symptoms if the spleen becomes enlarged. Often, it is found only during routine examination in many people. For some people there may be bloating sensation or fullness of the stomach and pain in the left abdomen radiating towards left shoulder. There may be frequent gas problem and the person may feel full after eating small amount of food.
- Other signs of enlarged spleen include fatigue, bleeding while passing stool and frequent stomach infections.
Enlarged Spleen Causes :
- Often infection and diseases are the main cause for enlargement of spleen. Viral infections like mononucleosis, bacterial infections like syphilis or endocarditis, parasitic infections like malaria can affect your spleen.
- Any problems with the liver like cirrhosis can affect and damage the spleen. If the person is anemic or experiencing hemolytic anemic condition then he may have enlarged spleen.
- Other disorders like blood cancer like leukemia, Gaucher’s disease, Hodgkin’s disease and Niemann Pick disease can cause this problem. Repeated pressure on the liver can affect the spleen and sometimes spleen gets affected when there is blood clot in the veins.
Who Are At Risk ?
- Children with lowered immunity and those suffering from infectious diseases like mononucleosis are prone for spleen enlargement. People with inherited blood disorders and genetic metabolic disorders can get this condition.
- Malaria can affect the functions of spleen causing inflammation. People who are frequently traveling to malaria prone area are under the risk of getting enlarged spleen.
Complications :