Patients with possible appendicitis are typically evaluated using a standard-dose contrast enhanced CT, but a low-dose unenhanced CT that delivers approximately 50% less radiation is just as effective, according to a study performed at the Seoul National University College of Medicine in Seoul, Korea.

Appendicitis is the most common childhood surgical emergency, but the diagnosis can be challenging, especially in children, often leading to either unnecessary surgery in children without appendicitis, or a ruptured appendix and serious complications when the condition is missed.

Could there be a link between high levels of air pollution and the risk of appendicitis? New research presented at the 73rd Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology in Orlando, suggests a novel connection.

CT scans change the initial treatment plans of emergency physicians in over 1/4 of patients with suspected appendicitis, according to a study performed at the University of Washington Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, WA.

It is not uncommon to find tissue that normally lines the stomach in locations outside of the digestive tract. This "heterotopic" gastric tissue has been identified in such diverse locations as the scrotum, the gall bladder, and the spinal cord.

Color Doppler ultrasound, not CT, should be the first imaging examination for adult patients with suspected acute appendicitis, a new study emphasi

In what is being described as an "unexpected finding," new research suggests no correlation between a patient's race and complications with acute appendicitis.

A 5-year-old with abdominal pain, nausea and fever may have appendicitis or any of a number of other problems. But how does the child’s doctor decide whether to schedule an emergency appendectomy to surgically remove a presumably inflamed appendix — a procedure that carries its own risks like any surgery — or wait and observe what could be a ticking time bomb that could rupture and kill the patient in a matter of hours?

It can be difficult to assess whether a patient is experiencing acute appendicitis or has an intestinal upset. CT, or computed tomography, scans can help determine if the patient needs to have his or her appendix removed. However, while having a clear picture showing the appendix confirms patient and physician suspicions, the time required to conduct the scan delays time to a potential operation, with the risk that the appendix could perforate while the patient awaits the test results.