DS Keller
Tanzania
Review Article
Review of Operative vs. Non-Operative Management of Appendicitis in Pregnancy
Author(s): EE Blears, DS Keller and CN EllisEE Blears, DS Keller and CN Ellis
The last decade has marked a paradigm shift in the care for acute appendicitis in children and non-pregnant adults. Although surgical management remains the safest treatment modality for perforated or complicated appendicitis, antibiotic therapy has been proven to be safe in adult and pediatric patients with non-perforated appendicitis. However, controversy exists for the type of surgery (laparoscopic vs. open) and the post-operative antibiotic regimens which result in optimal patient care of pregnant as well as non-pregnant adults. As several authors have begun to evaluate a non-operative strategy for treating acute appendicitis, whether with antibiotic therapy alone or combined with image-guided percutaneous drainage, others have retrospectively analyzed these strategies to pregnant women with abdominal pain. This collective review presents the epidemiology and diagnostic challenges.. View More»
