Appendicitis Surgery
It means inflammation of appendix (infection or swelling). The term acute means sudden development of the inflammatory process.
80% of cases of acute appendicitis are caused due to obstruction of lumen of appendix. The reason of obstruction could be a faecolith (i.e. hard faecal matter), worms if present in the intestines and rarely a foreign body like seeds.
Severe pain around the navel which shifts after few hours to the right lower abdomen. Coughing and straining cause an increase in the pain. Pain is accompanied by nausea and vomiting. Less common complaints include burning on passing urine and loose stools.
An abdomen ultrasound may help in reaching the diagnosis in case the clinical examination and other are inconclusive.
Gangrene and rupture of appendix causing generalized abdominal infection, Intra Abdominal Abscess (collection of pus) and Septicemia (generalized, severe infection in blood) leading to catastrophic life threatening consequences.
The treatment of acute appendicitis is removal of the appendix (i.e. Appendicectomy). This can be done by an open technique or laparoscopically. Laparoscopic appendicectomy is performed by making three tiny (3-5-10 mm) incisions through which the telescope and instruments are introduced and the appendix is removed. The advantage of laparoscopy over open technique is less pain, early recovery and excellent cosmetic results. Also, laparoscopically the entire abdomen and pelvis can be inspected to rule out any other pathology.
Laparoscopy has the advantage of lesser post operative pain, early recovery, good cosmetic results as well as the chance to rule out any other pathology present in the same surgical sitting. This is a method of choice in well equipped institutes having a trained surgical team.