title: Comparison of primary wound closure versus open wound management in perforated appendicitis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Open wound management has long been the most common practice after appendectomy for perforated appendicitis. Primary closure, however, has recently been advocated to reduce cost and morbidity. The aim of this study was to compare the results of open wound management and primary wound closure in adult patients (age, > or =15 years) with perforated appendicitis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Hospital records of 390 patients (age, > or =15 years) who underwent appendectomy between January 2002 and December 2004 were reviewed to identify surgical wound infection (SWI) and pathologic diagnosis. Perforated appendicitis was the indication for appendectomy in 65 of these patients. The incision wounds in these 65 patients were closed primarily in 41 and left open at the end of the operation in 24. The duration of symptoms, white blood cell count, operative time, incidence of SWI, length of stay (LOS) and readmission rate were compared between patients with these two different methods of wound management.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients whose wounds were closed primarily had a higher incidence of SWI (43.9% vs. 4.2%, p < 0.001) and longer LOS (10 days vs. 7.9 days, p = 0.044). The readmission rate was also higher for patients whose wounds were closed primarily; however, this difference was not significant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Open wound management may be preferable to primary wound closure for perforated appendicitis in adults because of a lower incidence of SWI and a shorter LOS. Randomized clinical trials, however, are needed to establish these findings.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Mackay Memorial Hospital, Taitung Branch, No. 1 Lane 303 Chang-Sha Street, Taitung 950, Taiwan. ryan@ttms.mmh.org.tw
authors.forename: Ruey-An
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Chiang
authors.forename: Shan-Long
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Yao-Chung
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Tsai
authors.forename: Ming-Jong
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Bair
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001062:Appendectomy; D001064:Appendicitis / Q000601:surgery*; D004322:Drainage / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013530:Surgical Wound Infection / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014945:Wound Healing
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents