Role of c reactive protein in acute appendicitis: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Introduction: The diagnosis of acute appendicitis is still difficult and probably the commonest difficulty in the emergency sur-gical department. Raised levels of inflammatory markers like C reactive protein (CRP) in a clinically suspected case of acute appendicitis suggest early exploration. Appendicitis is an inflammatory process in the appendix. There is no confirmatory tool to detect this inflammation and its sequelae. C-reactive protein is synthesized in the liver in the response of any sort of insult to the body including inflammation lead to the rise of a level. Diagnostic accuracy of CRP is a more than ESR and leucocyte count in detecting inflammatory processes. Hence this study was conducted to know the significance of CRP to detect acute appendicitis. Material and Method: This Prospective cross-sectional study was inclusive of 100 Patients of acute appendicitis with no age bar. Subjected for appendicectomy and resected specimen for histopathological examination, CRP was measured before sur-gery. Result: C-reactive protein was raised in 62 out of 100 patients. The sensitivity and specificity of was 81.28% and 92.86% with negative and positive predictive values were 26.26% and 99.37% respectively. Higher levels of CRP more than 15/dl were sug-gestive of complicated appendicitis like perforation and gangrene. Conclusion: CRP is a valuable investigation in acute appendicitis. CRP is a valuable tool to rule out acute appendicitis and complications but its value to detect or diagnose acute appendicitis is low.