Table 2. Hard and Soft CT Signs of Bowel and Mesenteric Injuries.

	Hard CT Signs	Soft CT Signs
Bowel	Extraluminal air collection	Free fluid
	Extraluminal spillage of bowel contents	Bowel wall thickening
	Bowel wall defect	Intramural hematoma
	Active vascular contrast extravasation	Abnormal bowel wall enhancement
	Metallic fragment(s) within bowel wall or lumen
Mesentery	Active vascular contrast extravasation	Free fluid
		Abnormal mesenteric vessels
		Mesenteric fat stranding and hematoma

Hard and soft computed tomography (CT) signs are based on predictive needs of surgical intervention. In general, a hard sign warrants a prompt surgical exploration. A combination of soft signs suggests a high probability of significant injuries whereas an isolated sign is used as an adjunct to the clinical evaluation.