Laparoscopic Appendectomy Combined with an "Antimicrobial-Free" Strategy for Acute Uncomplicated Appendicitis

To explore the efficacy and safety of enhanced recovery protocol (ERP) combined with laparoscopic appendectomy (LA) in the treatment of acute uncomplicated appendicitis (AUA) without antibiotics. In this study, a total of 160 patients with AUA who underwent LA between January 2018 and December 2021 were included and divided into the antibiotic group (n = 80) or the no-antibiotic group (n = 80). The patients in the antibiotic group received the ERP combined with antimicrobials during the perioperative period, while those in the no-antibiotic group only received the ERP during the perioperative period. The clinical data of these patients were collected to compare the inflammation level and stress state before and after surgery. In addition, the incidence of postoperative complications and the recovery speed of the patients were compared between groups. There were no significant differences in the inflammation level and stress state before or after surgery, the incidence of postoperative complications or the recovery speed between the antibiotic group and the no-antibiotic group (P > .05). The use of ERP combined with LA as an antimicrobial-free treatment scheme in the perioperative period was found to be safe and effective for patients with AUA. Therefore, this approach is clinically valuable.