About appendicitis
Appendicitis is an inflammation of the appendix.
The appendix is a small, tube-like structure that’s attached to the large intestine.
Appendicitis symptoms
The main symptom of appendicitis is stomach pain.
Appendicitis pain usually starts in the middle of the stomach around the belly button. It might feel like a dull cramp. Over the next few hours, the pain becomes sharper. Sometimes the pain can shift from being all over the stomach to the lower right side of the stomach, over the appendix.
Your child might be more uncomfortable when they’re trying to sit upright or walk straight. The pain will often get worse when your child moves.
Your child might also have fever, vomiting, diarrhoea and loss of appetite.
The symptoms of appendicitis aren’t as clear in young children as in teenagers and adults. You might not even know that a young child has stomach pain. They might just seem unusually quiet or irritable. You know your child best. If your child seems unwell, seek medical attention.
Medical help: when to get it for children and teenagers with appendicitis pain
If your child has tummy pain that’s getting worse, take your child to the GP or hospital emergency department.
If your child is extremely unwell and even a small amount of movement causes pain, take your child to a hospital emergency department or dial 000 for an ambulance straight away.
There’s a risk of the inflamed appendix bursting and releasing pus into the abdomen. This is called a ruptured appendix. It’s uncommon, but without treatment it can be very serious.
Diagnosing appendicitis
Doctors can often diagnose appendicitis by carefully examining your child and taking your child’s medical history.
But appendicitis can sometimes be difficult to diagnose. If doctors aren’t sure what’s causing your child’s symptoms, they might order a blood test to see whether there’s infection or inflammation somewhere in your child’s body. They might also order a urine test to rule out a urinary tract infection.
Doctors might also order an abdominal ultrasound.
Treatment for appendicitis
Surgery to remove the inflamed appendix is the most common treatment for appendicitis.
There are 2 kinds of surgery to take out an appendix:
- Keyhole surgery (laparoscopy) is where a camera and special instruments are inserted through 3 small cuts in different parts of your child’s abdomen.
- Open surgery is where a single, larger cut is made in your child’s abdomen.
The appendix doesn’t seem to have an important role in the body, so your child won’t have any problems if it’s taken out.
In some mild or uncomplicated cases of appendicitis, surgery might not be needed. In these cases, doctors can prescribe antibiotics and closely monitor your child to make sure they’re recovering well.
Causes of appendicitis
We don’t know what causes appendicitis. One theory is that if food or poo gets stuck in the appendix, it can cause a blockage, which can then get infected with bacteria.
We also don’t really know why we have an appendix or what it’s supposed to do in our bodies. It might just be a body part left over from human evolution.