Appendicitis occurs when bowel are trapped into the appendix and intestinal bacteria multiply and cause infection and swelling. The block may be a carcinoid or any kind of obstruction, rare cancer of appendix.
How to treat and prevent acute appendicitis
The surgical procedure of removing the appendix is known as appendectomy. Some patients are prescribed antibiotics to avoid and cure the infection. A rupture of the appendix may result in the complication of abdominal abcess which is a collection of puss, although appendicitis can not be prevented its complication can be prevented.
Diagnosis
If the examination in the abdominal area shows tenderness the patient should have his blood tested. To establish a certain differential diagnosis between appendicitis and any other viral infection generalized, or problem with the bowel and ovaries count the white blood cells and see if they look immature. CT scan or ultrasound are suggested as methods of diagnosis and even exploratory surgery should be done when physical examination is not enough.
Left untreated appendicitis results in peritonitis, sometimes you don’t need to have a surgical intervention for appendicitis and later the acute appendicitis results in chronic appendicitis and blockages caused by adhesions. Peritonitis is quite a severe infection of the membrane of the abdomen, pelvis and appendix and needs quick surgical intervention. Appendicitis symptoms differ from one person to another. One of them is abdominal pain which is at first diffuse and people do not indicate the exact location of pain, after the inflammation of the peritoneum the pain can be localized clearly in the area situated between the right hipbone and the belly button of the patient. McBurney's point which is famous in appendix inflammation becomes highly sensitive and painfully. If the appendix ruptures and the infection spreads the abdomen becomes inflamed and the pain is diffuse again.
Other symptoms are nausea, vomiting, fever, loss of appetite, progressive tenderness in the right lower abdomen. Abdominal pain appears during the activity, the breathing, coughing and sneezing, right-side abdominal pain in later stages. If we tough the area the abdomen is painful, bad breath may appear, abdominal swelling.
If uncomplicated appendicitis is operated people are able to eat and go home in 24-36 hours, in about two weeks time they may return to their activities.
Recognizing acute appendicitis is not a difficult matter as long as you know its symptoms, it is a disease with familial predisposition and affects a quite large number of people. It has been observed that its incidence is lower in cultures with high intake of dietary fiber nutrition, appendicitis is provoked by the obstructions of the appendices lumen. But, there are not enough explanations for the mechanisms of appendicitis. Its functions are: endocrine, lymphatic, exocrine, neuromuscular.
By: Groshan Fabiola