Monitoring Complications of Medically Managed Acute Appendicitis

Nonoperative management of acute appendicitis is becoming widespread, but recurrence and the potential for a complicated course are important concerns. An admission report-based institutional database was created to monitor appendicitis treatment outcomes. Complications and complexity of surgery were recorded based on manual chart review. A cohort of patients spanning one year was analyzed. Initial management was operative in 181 (82%) and nonoperative in 39 (18%) cases. There were no differences in demographics, BMI, or Alvarado score. One operative patient and 17 nonoperative patients required additional treatment for recurrence/nonresolution (0.6% vs 44%, P < 0.00001). Twenty-eight (15%) operative patients and 17 (44%) nonoperative patients had complications (P = 0.0003). Thirty-six (19.9%) operations in the operative group and 8 (53.3%) in the nonoperative group were classified as complex (P = 0.007). Hospital stay was longer in the nonoperative group (one vs two days, P = 0.005). Two incidental malignancies in the operative group and one in the nonoperative group were identified. These results are consistent with prior studies showing that recurrence/nonresolution is common after nonoperative management. For patients with recurrence/nonresolution, surgery may be more complex.