Acute appendicitis in pregnancy

Acute appendicitis is the most common cause of non-obstetric acute abdomen in pregnant women. We examined the patients who were admitted to our emergency department with abdominal pain and diagnosed with acute appendicitis in the light of the literature.

Seventeen pregnant patients with acute appendicitis who were admitted to the emergency department of Sanliurfa Training and Research Hospital between the years of 2016-2019 were retrospectively analyzed using an electronic recording system. Our patients were evaluated concerning age, gestational week, clinical status, the operation performed, ultrasonography results, pathology results, presence of additional diseases, laboratory results and hospital stay length.

The mean age of our patients was 25.5 (18-41) years. Three patients were in the first trimester (17.6%), 11 patients were in the second trimester (64.8%), and three patients were in the third trimester (17.6%) at the time of admission. All of our patients had abdominal pain. Acute appendicitis was detected in 11 patients, while it was not detected in six patients on the USG examination. Two patients having term delivery underwent caesarean section with concurrent appendectomy. The mean hospital stay length was 2.9 (2-5) days. Histopathologically, 13 (86.7%) of our operated patients were diagnosed with appendicitis. No additional problems were observed in the mothers and infants in the postoperative period.

Acute appendicitis should be considered as a non-obstetric pathology in pregnant patients admitted to the emergency department with abdominal pain. We think that it is important for both maternal and infant health to examine this condition, which shows differences concerning clinical course and physical examination, with a meticulous and multidisciplinary approach.