Spontaneous rectus sheath haematoma secondary to severe coughing in a patient with no other precipitating factors

A 62-year-old woman with a past medical history significant only for hypertension and hypothyroidism presented to the emergency department (ER), with right lower quadrant pain. She had, 1 day prior to the day of admission, been treated for bronchitis as an outpatient. She continued to experience multiple episodes of cough at home and eventually developed abdominal pain, which brought her to the ER. Her vitals were within normal limits and physical examination was significant for tenderness on palpation in the right lower quadrant of her abdomen, with guarding. Her blood work was significant for haemoglobin of 6.5 g/dL. Our …