title: [Chronic appendicitis. A case report].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The term chronic appendicitis has been used to describe any type of chronic pain that originates in the appendix, with or without inflammation. This broad category can be divided more specifically into: chronic or recurrent appendicitis and appendiceal colic pain.
  
  
  METHODS
  a 41-year-old female, suffering intestinal chronic constipation, abdominal pain, nausea, hiporexia and febricula, treated with antibiotics, vermifuges, analgesics and antispasmodics, showing a slight and partial improvement. She was suffering chronic pain in lower abdomen, mostly on the right side along a year. With these symptoms, she underwent an exploratory laparotomy, that showed chronic appendicitis. Appendix had been removed. The histopathological report corresponded to chronic appendicitis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  the histopathological characteristics and the clinical manifestations of the chronic appendicitis are different from those of acute appendicitis. Criteria for chronic appendicitis include: symptoms lasting longer than 4 weeks, confirmation of chronic swelling through histopathological examination, improvement of symptoms after appendectomy. The ultrasonic images, the barium enema and the computerized helicoidal tomography could be suggestive for its diagnosis.
authors.affiliation: Hospital de Especialidades Unidad Médica de Alta Especialidad, Puebla, Puebla México. dralmoja@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Alvaro José
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Montiel-Jarquín
authors.forename: Eduardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Gómez-Conde
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Reyes-Páramo
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Romero-Briones
authors.forename: Aurelio Valentín
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Mendoza-García
authors.forename: Ulises Noel
authors.initials: UN
authors.lastname: García-Ramírez
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001064:Appendicitis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans