Acute appendicitis in children

Appendicitis is quite common. It affects people of all ages. Appendicitis is the inflammation of the appendix due to various reasons. Many cases of appendicitis are related to emotions. Acute appendicitis initially occurs in the upper abdomen and gradually develops to the lower right abdomen after about an hour. Many patients with appendicitis also have fever, vomiting, etc.

Acute appendicitis in children is generally more serious than acute appendicitis in adults. Therefore, it is very important to diagnose and treat acute appendicitis in children in a timely manner. The younger the child with appendicitis, the more atypical the symptoms are. This requires parents to seek medical attention in time if they find their children have abdominal pain.

The basic treatment for acute appendicitis in children is early surgery to remove the appendix. However, the treatment plan must be determined based on age, lesion type, severity and general condition. For simple appendicitis that has not worsened after 1 to 2 days of conservative treatment, or for patients whose peritonitis has improved, is localized, or has formed an appendix abscess, surgery is not recommended. Instead, a conservative combination of Chinese and Western medicine should be used first. During conservative treatment, the progression of the disease should be closely monitored. If the body temperature rises, the tenderness expands, or the tension of an abscess increases, immediate surgery is required. For patients with purulent, gangrenous, or obstructive appendicitis within 3 days, surgical treatment should be performed as soon as possible.

1. Non-surgical treatment

Drug treatment:

Antibiotics: Penicillin, chloramphenicol, gentamicin and metronidazole (Flagyl) are commonly used to control three types of bacteria: Gram-positive, Gram-negative and anaerobic.

2. Before surgical treatment , the general condition of the child must be improved, including correction of dehydration and electrolyte imbalance, fever reduction, and application of antibiotics. If the abdomen is bloated, use gastrointestinal decompression. The main surgery is appendectomy.

Acute appendicitis in children can endanger the child's life. It can cause appendicitis perforation and necrosis, and cause peritonitis in a very short period of time. Even in today's advanced medical age, the mortality rate of children can reach 0.01% with timely treatment. Parents must be careful when taking care of their children, and should not let their children jump or jump right after a meal.