[Appendectomy à froid; a superfluous operation?]

A retrospective study was made of the course of the disease of 69 patients who during an uninterrupted period had been admitted with the diagnosis of acute appendicitis with infiltrate. After the usual conservative treatment, elective appendectomy à froid was scheduled for a few months later. On completion of the study, 61 of the 69 patients had been operated. Three patients had been operated on earlier than planned, because of recurrent abdominal complaints, while two patients had developed acute appendicitis. Two patients proved to have a carcinoma of the colon, one a carcinoid and three, an encapsulated abscess. Of the 61 patients operated on, 43 had no symptoms at the time of the appendectomy à froid. The authors advise no longer to perform appendectomy à froid; however, in patients over 40 years of age the possibility that a malignancy is causing the abdominal symptoms should be excluded.