Total antioxidant capacity in children with acute appendicitis.
OBJECTIVE
This study aimed to investigate antioxidant capacity by using a novel automated method in children with acute appendicitis.


METHODS
Blood samples were obtained from consecutive patients with acute appendicitis (appendicitis group, n = 12) and acute abdominal pain due to non surgical disease (non-appendicitis group, n = 11), and from patients with inguinal hernia (healthy group, n = 12) as the control group. At admission, total antioxidant capacity (TAC) levels of plasma were evaluated in all patients by a method recently developed by Erel. Four other major individual plasma antioxidant components, the levels of total protein, albumin, uric acid and bilirubin, were also evaluated. Total antioxidant capacity in patients with acute appendicitis was statistically compared with the two other groups.


RESULTS
While the TAC level in the appendicitis group was significantly greater than in the non-appendicitis group, no significant difference was found in healthy groups (p < 0.05, p > 0.05, 1.94 +/- 0.38, 1.40 +/- 0.36, and 1.99 +/- 0.35 respectively). Individual components of total antioxidant capacity, i.e. total protein, albumin, uric acid and bilirubin concentrations, were also higher in the patients with acute appendicitis than those of the other two control groups.


CONCLUSIONS
Our data show that children with acute appendicitis do not have deficient blood plasma antioxidant capacity. These results provide evidence that acute appendicitis results in more induction of antioxidative response than non-surgical diseases.
Kaya
M
M
Department of Pediatric Surgery, Harran University School of Medicine, Sanliurfa, Turkey. kayamete@yahoo.com
Boleken
M E
ME
Kanmaz
T
T
Erel
O
O
Yucesan
S
S
D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000097:blood; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000378:metabolism*; D001064:Appendicitis / Q000097:blood*; D001663:Bilirubin / Q000097:blood; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001798:Blood Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005759:Gastroenteritis / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D012709:Serum Albumin / Q000378:metabolism; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D014527:Uric Acid / Q000097:blood
D000975:Antioxidants; D015415:Biomarkers; D001798:Blood Proteins; D012709:Serum Albumin; D014527:Uric Acid; D001663:Bilirubin