Acute appendicitis

Abstract

Acute appendicitis is the most common surgical emergency of the abdomen, with more than 250,000 appendectomies performed annually in the USA. The diagnosis of appendicitis in a young male patient with acute right lower quadrant pain is frequently straightforward; however, the clinical diagnosis may be more elusive in women of childbearing age and in those at the extremes of age. Controversies concerning the treatment of perforated appendicitis, use of nonoperative management, and laparoscopy as a diagnostic and treatment modality are discussed along with the epidemiology, etiology, diagnosis, and management of this still often challenging entity in acute care surgery.