Acute Appendicitis: A Comparative Study of Clinical, Radiological And Operative Findings

Abstract

Vermiform appendix, a narrow worm shaped tube, which springs from the posteromedial wall of caecum, although being vestigial, is a favourite site of various disease processes.. Acute appendicitis is the most common cause of an "acute abdomen ''in young adults and thus appendicectomy is the most frequently performed urgent abdominal operation. 1 Various diagnostic modalities are used to diagnose it accurately. The present study is attempted to evaluate the efficiency of clinical examination, radiological investigations, intraoperative and histopathological examination in diagnosis of acute appendicitis. Methods: Fifty consecutive patients suspected of acute appendicitis were admitted, clinically examined, investigatedradiologically, operated and excised samples were examined histopathologically. Results: The results of the study showed that in almost all cases (98%) diagnosis is accurately made only on the basis of clinical examination, while in a significant number of cases (18%), radiological investigations, used for diagnosis, failed to diagnose the positive cases. Conclusion: Acute appendicitis is more a clinical diagnosis rather than radiological and it is better to use radiological investigations only to confirm the diagnosis of acute appendicitis rather to diagnose it primarily because it is clear from the present study that a significant number of positive cases had been missed radiologically.