The intestines all stick together, which makes going in to do surgery more problematic. During these situations, Rodriguez says surgeons often treat the infection with intravenous IV antibiotics and remove the appendix within six to eight weeks. Surgery is the preferred treatment for appendicitis, as it is considered the most efficient method to getting patients on the quickest road to recovery. Most patients with early appendicitis will go home the same day of the surgery or the next day.
While some swelling, bruising and minor discomfort around the surgical incisions can be expected, Rodriguez says most people are able to walk and eat after surgery, and are back to work or school within a week. Newer studies have shown recurrence rates of appendicitis in patients treated with antibiotics may be higher than what were initially thought, but Rodriguez says it is still a safe alternative to surgery in certain instances.
Other Common Questions Concerning the Appendix. Why do we have an appendix? The entire digestive tract helps with our immune system, but some scientists and doctors think the appendix may be a place for our body to store certain healthy types of gut bacteria that otherwise could be altered or changed during an intestinal illness or with overuse of antibiotics. The theory is that the good bacteria can hide in the appendix and then help repopulate the rest of the colon with healthy bacteria if things ever get unbalanced.
I heard that people who get their appendix removed are more likely to have their gallbladder removed — is that true?
This is not true. The appendix and gallbladder are separate organs with separate functions. People may think this because a lot of people have had their appendix or gallbladder out. Along with hernia surgery, appendix and gallbladder surgery are the most common abdominal surgeries. Severe abdominal pain requires immediate medical attention. A blockage in the lining of the appendix that results in infection is the likely cause of appendicitis.
The bacteria multiply rapidly, causing the appendix to become inflamed, swollen and filled with pus. If not treated promptly, the appendix can rupture. A pocket of pus that forms in the abdomen. If your appendix bursts, you may develop a pocket of infection abscess. In most cases, a surgeon drains the abscess by placing a tube through your abdominal wall into the abscess. The tube is left in place for about two weeks, and you're given antibiotics to clear the infection. Once the infection is clear, you'll have surgery to remove the appendix.
In some cases, the abscess is drained, and the appendix is removed immediately. Mayo Clinic does not endorse companies or products. Advertising revenue supports our not-for-profit mission. This content does not have an English version. The GI tract is a complex group of organs, each of which helps your body digest and absorb food. Your upper GI tract includes your esophagus, stomach, and the first section of your small intestine, called the duodenum.
The lower GI tract is made up of most of your small intestine and all of your large intestine, which includes your colon, rectum, and anal canal. Your appendix is located in the lower right part of your abdomen, in an area that doctors refer to as McBurney's point.
If applying pressure on McBurney's point results in pain or tenderness, your doctor may suspect that you have appendicitis. The finger-shaped appendix is attached to a part of your large intestine called the cecum — a small pouch typically considered to be the beginning of the large intestine.
The muscles lining your GI tract, along with the hormones and enzymes that the system produces, allow your GI tract to break down and process food. Your appendix doesn't directly help with digestion. It's been unclear what role the appendix has in the body, and removal of the organ doesn't appear to have any negative health consequences. For many years, scientists believed the appendix was a vestigial organ — one that lost its original function through centuries of evolution. Researchers thought that no other mammals had an appendix, aside from our closest ape relatives.
What's more, the cecum of plant-eating mammals is far larger than it is in humans. On this basis, Charles Darwin theorized that our distant ancestors also had large ceca, which allowed them to dine on leaves like the herbivores of today. But as these ancestors shifted to a diet based on fruits, which are easier to digest, their ceca shrank. The appendix, Darwin believed, is just a shriveled up part of the cecum, which evolution hasn't entirely eliminated.
Some scientists now believe the appendix is not useless after all, and may help our guts recover after a gastrointestinal disease strikes. The appendix contains a particular type of tissue associated with the lymphatic system, which carries the white blood cells needed to fight infections.
In recent years, scientists have found that lymphatic tissue encourages the growth of some beneficial gut bacteria, which play an important role in human digestion and immunity.
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