Avoiding appendectomy to treat appendicitis might be possible with antibiotic treatment.
Researchers from the University of Turku (Finland) followed for 3 years 530 patients aged 18 to 60 years diagnosed with acute uncomplicated appendicitis.
The first group of 273 volunteers underwent an appendectomy (a classic operation to remove the inflamed appendix). The second group of 257 participants was treated with antibiotics.
The findings of this study showed positive results from treatment with antibiotics.
Indeed, 186 of the patients treated with antibiotics did not need an appendectomy, 70 patients underwent an operation during the year following the treatment and 58 of them showed no signs of complications. after appendectomy. 7 participants developed acute appendicitis with complications and 5 patients without appendicitis were operated on to avoid any recurrent risk.
This therapeutic solution could make it possible in certain cases to avoid the surgical operation and avoid the associated risks.
“This non-invasive method of care has not been shown to be inferior to surgery and can avoid hospitalization for appendicitis,” explains Paulina Salminen, researcher in the division of digestive surgery and urology, University Hospital of Turku.
The risks of appendectomy
Each year around 80,000 appendectomies are performed in France. Even though this number is on the decline (thanks to advances in medical imaging, operations have dropped from 300,000 in 1980 to less than 80,000 in 2005) and this practice is common, any surgical operation carries risks. “Even though appendectomy is a common procedure, it can nevertheless lead to specific complications (peritonitis by stump release, postoperative abscess, etc.) and complications inherent in any act of abdominal surgery (phlebitis, pulmonary embolism, hemorrhage, infection at the level of the incision, the urinary catheter, a venous route, occlusion and intraperitoneal flange …) “, recalls the High Authority of Health (HAS).
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