Appendectomy: Emergent or urgent?

December 3, 2010, by Lytle Brown IV, MD, FACS

When you think of someone in need of an appendectomy, you probably think of them being whisked off for emergency surgery as quickly as possible. For good reason: Appendectomies are the most common emergent surgical procedure performed worldwide.

A study reported in the September issue of the Archives of Surgery may change that way of thinking, however. The study indicates that when treating adults with acute appendicitis it is not harmful to delay appendectomy for 12 hours or more. (more…)

Posted in General Surgery | Comments (0)