Alcoholic liver disease complicated by deep bleeding into the muscles or retroperitoneum: Report of three cases and a review of the literature

Abstract

We herein report three cases of alcoholic cirrhosis complicated by deep bleeding. In two of the three cases, intramuscular or retroperitoneal hematomas developed spontaneously. In contrast, in the remaining case, an intramuscular hematoma developed after trauma. In the former two patients, the intramuscular hematomas recurred at other sites during hospitalization. All three patients received conservative therapy, and one patient with a retroperitoneal hematoma underwent transcatheter arterial embolization. All of the patients eventually died of liver failure. The occurrence of severe alcoholic liver disease with deep bleeding has recently been reported with increasing frequency, and clinicians should bear this condition in mind as a life-threatening complication of alcoholic liver disease.