Round ligament varicosity thrombosis presenting as an irreducible inguinal mass in a postpartum woman

Abstract

Round ligament varicosities occur almost exclusively in pregnant and postpartum women and present similarly to inguinal hernias clinically, thus posing diagnostic challenges to clinicians. The distinction of the two conditions is important as round ligament varicosities do not require surgery while inguinal hernias do. Rarely, round ligament varicosites may be complicated by thrombosis or hemorrhage. In this case report, we present a rare case of round ligament varicosity (RLV) which has been complicated by thrombosis. The radiological features on ultrasound and contrast computed tomography of a thrombosed RLV are presented.