UMEM Educational Pearls

Category: Pediatrics

Title: Children and appendicitis (submited by Yazid Almalky, MBBS)

Posted: 2/17/2012 by Mimi Lu, MD
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Children & Appendicitis

Vomiting may be the first sign.
Children may not experience anorexia and may actually request food.
Most young children have perforation at the time of diagnosis.
Children younger than 2 years of age may have generalized symptoms such as irritability and tachypnea.
Ultrasonography is useful in evaluation of thin children but is very operator dependent.
CT with oral contrast and i.v. contrast may be needed to differentiate intraabdominal structures in thin children