Sonographic appearance of a tear of the lateral internal oblique muscle resulting from cough

Abstract

During forced respiratory movement such as coughing, complications can occur, including abdominal muscle rupture. We report a case of spontaneous tear of the internal oblique muscle resulting from violent cough diagnosed by sonography. The physiology of cough and the possible pathophysiologic mechanism of this case is discussed. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.