A young boy presented with history of abdominal trauma. History and initial clinical findings suggested a soft tissue injury. Due to increasing abdominal pain and fever, we proceeded with an exploratory laparotomy with a diagnosis of intra-abdominal injury, at which we found a perforated appendix. Appendicitis following blunt abdominal trauma needs high index of suspicion.
While endometriosis is fairly common, endometriosis of the appendix is a very rare occurrence. Correct pre-operative diagnosis is uncommon and definitive diagnosis is established by histology of the appendix. We present a case of endometriosis of the appendix that manifested as acute appendicitis in a 40-year-old woman.
Appendicitis within an Amyand's hernia is rare; when it occurs it is often misdiagnosed as a strangulated inguinal hernia. Management of these cases needs to be individualized according to the presentation. In uncomplicated cases, we recommend concurrent appendectomy and darning repair of the hernia. We present such a case and review the related literature.
Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is a common cause of morbidity and accounts for 1 in 60 GP consultations by women under the age of 45 in the UK. Pelvic inflammatory disease encompases a broad category of disease including endometritis, salphingitis, salphingo-oopheritis, tuboovarian abscess and pelvic peritonitis. It most commonly occurs as a result of Chlamydia trachomatis or Nesseria gonorrhea 1,2 infection of the endocervix that eventually spread into the upper genital tract. Direct spread from a nearby infection such as appendicitis and diverticulitis is not that common. Hematogenous spread is rare except in cases of tuberculous pelvic inflammatory disease. This case illustrates atypical presentation of pelvic inflammatory disease in a previously healthy single unmarried lady. The presence of ascites, bilateral ovarian mass and constitutional symptoms closely mimics that of malignant ovarian tumour. This was preceded by empyema which grew E coli.
Acute appendicitis has been known as a disease entity for well over a century but a confident diagnosis before surgery in all patients suspected of the condition is still not possible. Timely diagnosis is essential to minimise morbidity due to possible perforation of the inflamed organ in the event treatment is delayed; so much so that surgeons often preferred to operate at the slightest suspicion of the diagnosis in the past. This resulted in the removal of many normal appendixes. When the diagnosis of appendicitis is clear from the history and clinical examination, then no further investigation is necessary and prompt surgical treatment is appropriate. Where there is doubt about the diagnosis however it is advisable to resort to imaging studies such as abdominal ultrasound or computed tomography to clear such suspicions before subjecting the patient to an appendicectomy. These studies would also help avoid delays in surgery in deserving patients.
Enteric duplication is an uncommon malformation of the gastrointestinal tract which is either asymptomatic or presents with vague symptoms mimicking other more common pathology. It is most commonly diagnosed when complications such as bleeding, intestinal obstruction or perforation occurs. This is a case report of a patient with this condition presenting with right iliac fossa pain and localised peritonitis mimicking acute appendicitis.
The place of laparoscopic appendicectomy in the management of complicated appendicitis remains unsettled with reports of a higher incidence of postoperative intraperitoneal abscess. Most studies on laparoscopic appendicectomy in children have been done in the Western population. This retrospective review was done to compare laparoscopic appendicectomy with open appendicectomy in children with complicated appendicitis in a hospital in Malaysia.
Spontaneous bladder perforation secondary to tuberculosis (TB) is very rare. Only three cases have been reported so far in the literature. Due to its rarity, the diagnosis of spontaneous bladder perforation is often missed. Confirmation of TB via culture takes a long time and starting empirical treatment for TB is necessary. We relate our experience with a young woman who presented with clinical features of a perforated appendix and was only diagnosed with bladder perforation during laparotomy. She also had distal right ureteral stricture and left infundibular stenosis. The provisional diagnosis of TB was attained via typical histopathological features and a positive Mantoux test. She was started empirically on anti-TB treatment and recovered without any complications. Urine culture after 6 weeks confirmed the diagnosis of TB.
Acute appendicitis is a common surgical emergency. The etiology and pathophysiology of appendicitis have been well investigated. Aggregatibacter aphrophilus is a fastidious gram-negative coccobacilli. Detection of this organism in clinical samples and its differentiation from Haemophilus aphrophilus or from Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans in routine microbiology settings could be difficult.
Acute appendicitis is an infrequent yet the commonest surgical emergency in pregnancy occurring in about 1:1500 pregnancies. The classical abdominal pain in the right lower quadrant of the abdomen is the only reliable clinical sign. Delay in diagnosis is attributed to presence of symptoms commonly seen in pregnancy like nausea and vomiting and difficulty in localizing abdominal pain due to displacement of the appendix with advancing gestation. Perforated appendix and generalized peritonitis impacts adversely on pregnancy contributing to increases in miscarriage, pre-term delivery, fetal loss and even maternal mortality. Imaging studies like abdominal ultrasonogram, helical computerized tomography and magnetic imaging have been utilized to complement clinical suspicion and decrease ‘negative appendectomies’ but robust data on their routine use is awaited. Although the laparoscopic approach is a useful diagnostic and therapeutic tool in early pregnancy, its use as the primary approach for appendicectomy in pregnancy requires further evaluation as increases in the incidence of fetal loss of 5.6% has been reported compared to 3.1% in open access surgery
Acute appendicitis is one of the most common differential diagnoses for acute abdominal pain made by emergency doctors. Suspected cases require surgical referral for observation or definitive intervention to prevent complications. A high index of suspicion and good clinical skills with the aid of scoring systems allows early decision making, which includes optimal pain control. The objective of this study was to identify the pain score and is relationship to the cut-off points of the Alvarado scoring system so that justifies early surgical referral or discharge for suspected acute appendicitis from the Emergency Department of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC). This was a cross sectional study of acute abdominal pain from June 2007 to September 2008. All patients who fulfilled the criteria and consented to the study were assessed for Alvarado score, verbal numerical pain score (VNRS) and their subsequent management. Patients with an Alvarado score of ≥7 were likely to have acute appendicitis (80.1% sensitivity and 52.63% specificity) and those with the score of ≤3 were unlikely to have acute appendicitis. The median pain score was 7.00 (IQR: 5.00-8.50) but 72.5% did not receive any analgesia. There was no direct relationship between the pain score with Alvarado score. Oligoanalgesia in patients with acute appendicitis still exist in Emergency Department of UKMMC.
Diagnosing acute appendicitis in children can be difficult due to atypical presenting symptoms. While there are reported cases of acute appendicitis or appendiceal masses causing unilateral hydronephrosis, bilateral hydronephrosis as a complication of appendiceal mass is very rare. We report a case of a child who presented with cardinal symptomatology associated with the urogenital tract. Ultrasound (US) investigation showed a pelvic mass causing bilateral hydronephrosis. An initial diagnosis of a pelvic teratoma was made based on the US and computed tomography (CT) scan findings. The final diagnosis of an appendiceal mass causing bilateral hydronephrosis was established intraoperatively.
Although laparoscopic surgeries are associated with reduced surgical stress response and shortened post-operative recovery, intense pain and high analgesia requirements in the immediate post-operative period are often the chief complaints.
Acute appendicitis is the most common extra-uterine surgical emergency encountered during pregnancy, but an accurate diagnosis is still an enigma. Anatomical shifting of the appendix by the enlarging uterus makes the clinical and sonographic diagnosis difficult. Prompt diagnosis and treatment are essential to prevent perforation, which increases the risk of fetal and maternal death. Surgical intervention, either by an open laparotomy or laparoscopy is the most appropriate treatment for appendicitis. This article reviews the epidemiology, clinical diagnosis, investigation, complications and treatment of acute appendicitis in pregnancy.
It is crucial to realize that both omental infarction and acute appendicitis can occur simultaneously in the children as both diseases are managed differently. Omental infarction itself is rare in the pediatric group, and its association with acute appendicitis is even rarer. Both diseases usually present with right sided abdominal pain. Ultrasound is the choice of imaging modality in the investigation of abdominal pain in the children. It should not be content if omental infarction is detected, whilst the normal appendix is not seen. We reported a case of simultaneous omental infarction and acute appendicitis in a child who presented with 3 days history of right sided abdominal pain. It was diagnosed preoperatively by ultrasound. Prompt surgical intervention was proceeded and the child made uneventful recovery.
Abdominal pain with dengue fever can be a diagnostic challenge. Typically, pain is localised to the epigastric region or associated with hepatomegaly. Patients can also present with acute abdomen. We report a case of a girl with dengue fever and right iliac fossa pain. The diagnosis of acute appendicitis was made only after four days of admission. An appendicular mass and a perforated appendix was noted during appendectomy. The patient recovered subsequently. Features suggestive of acute appendicitis are persistent right iliac fossa pain, localised peritonism, persistent fever and leucocytosis. Repeated clinical assessment is important to avoid missing a concurrent diagnosis like acute appendicitis.
Subhepatically located caecum and appendix is a very rare entity. It occurs due to the anomaly in fetal gut rotation that results in an incomplete rotation and fixation of the intestine. Appendicitis, which is a common surgical emergency, in combination with the abnormal subhepatic location, presents a great challenge in its diagnosis and management. Here, we describe a 42-year-old male with chronic dyspepsia who presented with sepsis and severe pain at his right hypochondriac and epigastric region. The final diagnosis was acute appendicitis of the subhepatic appendix. Our discussion focuses on the diagnostic approach and clinical and surgical management. We hope that our report will increase the awareness among the clinicians and hasten the management of such rare condition to avoid complications.
Alimentary tract duplication is a rare congenital anomaly which may involve any part of the alimentary tract extending from stomach to rectum. Clinical presentation may mimic an inflamed appendix as described in this case. A 9-year-old boy with a clinical diagnosis of perforated appendix was noted to have a normal appendix intra-operatively. On further search for an underlying pathology, a gangrenous ileal duplication was discovered. En-bloc resection with primary bowel anastomosis was done. Histopathology report revealed a gangrenous small bowel duplication. We discuss the preoperative diagnostic dilemma and management options in approaching this rare entity.