Appendicitis News and Research

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Appendicitis is a painful swelling and infection of the appendix. The appendix is a fingerlike pouch attached to the large intestine and located in the lower right area of the abdomen. Scientists are not sure what the appendix does, if anything, but removing it does not appear to affect a person’s health. The inside of the appendix is called the appendiceal lumen. Mucus created by the appendix travels through the appendiceal lumen and empties into the large intestine.

Proteins detected in urine may enable diagnosis of Kawasaki disease

A set of proteins detected in urine by researchers at Boston Children's Hospital may prove to be the first biomarkers for Kawasaki disease, an uncommon but increasingly prevalent disease which causes inflammation of blood vessels that can lead to enlarged coronary arteries and even heart attacks in some children.

20 Dec 2012

AspenBio Pharma closes underwritten public offering of 1,946,000 shares of common stock

AspenBio Pharma, Inc., an in vitro diagnostic company, today announced the closing of an underwritten public offering of 1,946,000 shares of common stock at an offering price of $2.10 per share.

21 Nov 2012

AspenBio Pharma provides clinical and business update for third quarter 2012

AspenBio Pharma, Inc., an in vitro diagnostic company, today provided a clinical and business update for the third quarter 2012. The Company reported it has started the hospital training phase of its pivotal U.S. clinical study and remains on track to initiate patient enrollment before the end of the year.

13 Nov 2012

AIUM to host Ultrasound First Forum on Nov. 12

The American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) will host an Ultrasound First Forum on November 12, 2012, in New York, New York. The forum will address the expanding role of ultrasound imaging as a "first" imaging examination and will be devoted to encouraging the use of ultrasound as a safe, effective, and affordable alternative to other diagnostic imaging modalities where scientific evidence supports its appropriateness.

12 Oct 2012

No benefit from irrigation during appendectomy

Irrigating the peritoneal cavity during appendectomy for perforated appendicitis offers no advantage over suction alone, with similar rates of postoperative abscess in children treated using both approaches, according to the findings of a US study.

11 Oct 2012

Antibiotic therapy can effectively treat acute appendicitis

Although the standard approach to acute appendicitis is to remove the appendix, a study at the Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, reveals that treatment with antibiotics can be just as effective in many cases.

27 Sep 2012

Positive data from Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals’ eravacycline Phase 2 trial on cIAI

Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage life science company developing novel antibiotics effective against antibiotic-resistant bacteria, presented new, positive Phase 2 clinical data on its lead drug candidate, eravacycline (TP-434), on September 11, 2012, at the 52nd Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC) in San Francisco, CA.

13 Sep 2012

Abdominal pain duration influences appendicitis imaging diagnosis

Clinicians should not rely on ultrasonography for diagnosing pediatric appendicitis early in the course of illness, say US researchers.

14 Aug 2012

Laparoscopic appendectomy preferable for obese patients

Obese patients with appendicitis have fewer postoperative complications, a shorter stay in hospital, and shorter operative times when treated with laparoscopic appendectomy rather than open appendectomy, study findings show.

10 Jul 2012

Obese patients with appendix less likely to have complications after minimally invasive procedure

Obese patients who need to have their appendixes removed fare better after a minimally invasive surgical procedure rather than an open operation, according to a new study published in the July issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.

27 Jun 2012

Scoring system identifies appendicitis in pediatric acute abdomen pain

Using a pediatric appendicitis score may help to identify true cases of appendicitis among children who present to emergency departments with acute abdominal pain, researchers report.

26 Jun 2012

Hypertension-associated hospitalizations of children on the increase

The number of children hospitalized with hypertension in the USA increased dramatically between 1997 and 2006, with associated increases in healthcare costs, say researchers.

20 Jun 2012

Western-style diets may increase risk of inflammatory bowel disease

Certain saturated fats that are common in the modern Western diet can initiate a chain of events leading to complex immune disorders such as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) in people with a genetic predisposition, according to a study to be published early online in the journal Nature.

14 Jun 2012

New EMR tool helps reduce unnecessary abdominal CT scan use among ER patients

A new electronic medical record tool that tallies patients' previous radiation exposure from CT scans helps reduce potentially unnecessary use of the tests among emergency room patients with abdominal pain, according to a study from researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania that will be presented today at the annual meeting of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine.

14 May 2012

Removing ruptured appendix sooner lowers hospital costs, charges

Removing a child's ruptured appendix sooner rather than later significantly lowers hospital costs and charges, according to a recently published study.

30 Apr 2012

Health care not structured in the interest of the patient

You're enjoying a quiet weekend at home when suddenly you double over in pain. You need emergency appendectomy surgery. How much should it cost? And how much price shopping are you able to do?

26 Apr 2012

Study finds increase in use of emergency CT in pediatric patients with abdominal pain

Computed tomography (CT) utilization in pediatric patients with non-traumatic abdominal pain increased in emergency departments each year between 1999 and 2007, according to a new study published online in the journal Radiology. The study authors found no corresponding increase in ultrasound use during the same period, despite research supporting it as an important diagnostic tool for assessing pediatric abdominal pain.

24 Apr 2012