title: Ninety-four appendectomies for suspected acute appendicitis during pregnancy.
abstract: Acute appendicitis during pregnancy is a rare event, and large numbers of cases reported in the literature stem entirely from data stored in national registers. Between 1974 and 2000 relevant perioperative data on the treatment of appendicitis were collected consecutively and analyzed retrospectively. Surgical and obstetric data relating to the medical history, the clinical, intraoperative, and histologic findings, and the course of the pregnancy were recorded. Altogether, 9793 appendectomies were performed, 94 of which were in pregnant women (24.5% during the first trimester, 51% during the second trimester, and 24.5% during the third trimester). This represents 0.2% of the 46,960 deliveries during the period under observation. Fifty percent of the case histories during the second trimester were atypical. The overall perforation rate was 14.9%; it was 8.7%, 12.5%, and 26.1% during the three trimesters, respectively. Maternal mortality was 0%; the combined miscarriage/abortion rate was 8.5% (n = 8); and infant mortality was 3.2% (n = 3). The postoperative spontaneous abortion rate was 13.0% and the additional therapeutic/requested abortion rate 21.7% during the first trimester. In view of the elevated postoperative abortion rate and the facility of the clinical diagnosis during the first trimester, the indication for invasive diagnostic measures and surgery requires careful consideration. During the second and third trimesters the difficulty of establishing a clinical diagnosis makes it necessary to undertake exploratory surgery early.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Carl-Thiem-Hospital, Thiemstrasse 111, 03048 Cottbus, Germany. t.ueberrueck@ctk.de
authors.forename: Torsten
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ueberrueck
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Koch
authors.forename: Lutz
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Meyer
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hinkel
authors.forename: Ingo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gastinger
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001062:Appendectomy; D001064:Appendicitis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal