Appendix and its Purpose

Read this article that was published in the Mumbai Mirror on January 20-2010.

Appendicitis may be related to viral infections

Can you catch appendicitis? And if you do, is it necessarily an emergency that demands immediate surgery? Yes and no, according to a new study by UT southwestern Medical Centre.
The researchers evaluated data over a 36 year period and concluded in a paper appearing in this month’s Archives of surgery that appendicitis may be caused by undermined viral infection or infections, said Edward Livingston, chief of surgery at UT Southwestern and senior author of the report.
Appendicitis is the common reason for emergency general surgery. It was first identified in 1886. Since then, doctors have presumed quick removal of the appendix was a necessity to avoid it bursting, which can be an emergency. Because removing the appendix is generally safe, it became standard practice in the early 20th century.
But this latest research studying appendicitis trends from 1970 to 2006 suggests immediate may not be necessary. Evidence from sailors at sea without access to immediate surgery and from some children’s hospitals, whose practice did call for emergency surgery, hinted that non-perforated appendicitis may resolve without surgery.
In undertaking the study, researchers screened the diagnosis for admissions for appendicitis, influenza, Rota virus and other infections. They found that seasonal variations clustering of the cases support the theory that it may be a viral disease, like the flu.
In addition, researchers uncovered some seasonal trends for appendicitis, with a slight increase in cases during the summer. They have also been able to rule out flu and other common infections as a cause. Appendicitis afflicts about one in ten people during their lifetime.
“Though appendicitis is fairly common, it still remains a frustrating mystery,” Livingston said.
“While we know removal is an effective treatment, we still don’t know the purpose of the
appendix, nor what exactly causes it to become obstructed.”

Appendix must be a valve to reduce pressure when waste pass from the small intestine to the large intestine in mass, just like the vacuum flask valve does. It can be filled with stool when having loose motions and cause infection.

Several years ago I took a relative to my family doctor for prolonged stomach pain. He presumed it appendicitis and referred for further tests. Her X-ray showed appendix was not infected. But during his treatment suddenly bleeding started from her bowels, so he thought appendix had burst and got her admitted to hospital in emergency and she had undergone a surgery unnecessarily. The medicine he had administered must have caused the bleeding. Still she suffers prolonged pain and has to take medicine daily for digestion.

Again once I had uncontrollable vomiting he confirmed it was appendicitis and waited to get me admitted to the hospital for surgery at midnight. I told him I would be all right by morning and took some medicine he had prescribed. I had no pain or any discomfort in the lower abdomen. X-ray had taken and further tests had done in the morning. My X-ray report showed appendix was not filled with barium. Since appendix was not visible in the X-ray I asked my doctor where the appendix is, to clear the doubt. At first he said, “It is in the back side, then said, it is not visible because it is infected.” How can we trust doctors who talk like that? However, I escaped surgery and further complications related to it.