Appendicitis

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Topic Overview

What is appendicitis?

Appendicitis is one of the causes of serious belly pain. It happens when the appendix , a part of the large intestine, becomes infected and inflamed. Experts do not know what the appendix does in the body, but most of the time it does not cause problems.

About 8 out of 100 people will get appendicitis sometime during their lives. It is most common in people ages 10 to 30, but it can happen at any age.

What causes appendicitis?

It is not clear why people get appendicitis. Infection in the appendix causes appendicitis. But doctors and scientists are not sure what causes the infection. In many cases, a small object (such as a hard piece of stool) blocks the opening to the appendix. Then bacteria can grow in the appendix and cause an infection.

What are the symptoms?

The main symptom of appendicitis is belly pain. Many people feel the first pain near the belly button. Then it moves to the lower right side of the belly. But the pain can be in different parts of your belly or even on your side or back. The pain may get worse if you move, walk, or cough. You may also have a fever or feel sick to your stomach.

Sometimes the only symptom is a general feeling of not being well and a pain that is hard to describe. The pain in your belly may be different than any pain you have had before. It may be severe. Or it may not seem like a very strong pain, but you may have the feeling that something is wrong. Trust your instincts.

Because the diagnosis is not always easy to make, it is very important to see a doctor as soon as possible if you have symptoms.

In some cases, appendicitis does not cause any symptoms except for belly pain. If you have moderate belly pain that does not go away after 4 hours, call your doctor. If you have severe belly pain, call your doctor right away.

How is appendicitis diagnosed?

Your doctor will ask you questions about what symptoms you have, when they started, and what was happening before the pain began. Your doctor will press on your belly to see where the pain is. He or she will take your temperature to see if you have a fever, which is a sign of infection. You also may have blood tests to look for signs of infection.

Your doctor may not be sure whether you have appendicitis. You may need other tests, such as a CT scan or an ultrasound of your belly.

Sometimes tests can't show for certain that you have appendicitis, but your doctor may strongly suspect that you do because of your symptoms. In this case, your doctor probably will recommend you have surgery to have your appendix taken out. Most of the time, the doctor is right and the appendix is infected. During surgery your doctor may find that your appendix is normal and something else caused your pain. Your doctor will go ahead and remove your appendix. You can live just fine without it, and taking it out gets rid of any chance that it could cause problems later.

How is it treated?

The only treatment for appendicitis is surgery to remove your appendix (appendectomy). If you have appendicitis and do not have surgery in time, your appendix can burst. A burst appendix can cause serious problems. It’s best to remove the appendix before it bursts.

There are different types of surgery for appendicitis. Your surgeon may operate through a large cut (incision) in your belly or use a tool called a laparoscope to remove your appendix through a few smaller incisions. Either way, you may take antibiotics before your surgery, after your surgery, or both. There are advantages and disadvantages to each type of surgery. Talk with your surgeon about which type is best for you.

If your appendix does burst, you will need antibiotics. Surgery to remove a burst appendix may be more complicated.

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Last updated:	May 14, 2007
Author:	Monica Rhodes
Reviewed By:	Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine, Brent Shoji, MD - General Surgery
Editors:	Sydney Youngerman-Cole, RN, BSN, RNC, Pat Truman