There may be a good chance that this is not the first time you've heard about appendectomy. You probably have a friend whose appendix was taken out, but do you really know what appendicitis is? Or what your appendix does, for that matter?
To start with the basics, Appendicitis is plainly an inflammation of the appendix which is a thin, worm-shaped pouch attached to the large intestine. Significant symptoms include belly-button pain and right-side abdominal pain. However, while the movies exaggerate how these happen, the symptoms are actually often the opposite. Many people don't feel the pain in the same place, because the location of your appendix plays a major part in it.
Eugene Shapiro, MD, deputy director of the Investigative Medicine Program at Yale University explained to Health that normally, the appendix point forward in the body that's why most of the pain you feel are in front, but others have it pointing backwards having the symptoms present in a totally different location, and making it difficult to diagnose.
Other definitive symptoms include fever, nausea and vomiting, and bloating. If you have any of these, the best advice is to see your doctor ASAP.
People usually think that the absence of pain is a good thing when really it's not a good sign. When you are relieved from the pain of appendicitis, it means that your appendix has ruptured and fluids can seep through your abdomen and causing an infection called Peritonitis, which can be life threatening. A ruptured appendix requires an urgent surgery to remove the appendix and clean the abdominal cavity.
Appendicitis usually happens among young people between the ages 10 and 30. These days however, it is getting more common among older people. According to a study, there is an increase of 6.3% in the number of cases in older people between the ages 30 and 69 years old. And in most cases, most of those who are diagnosed are men.
Most people question why the appendix is even in there. Some think it's useless and serve no purpose being there. But according to a study, it actually has a benefit having that little guy around. According to a 2007 study, the appendix is a "safe house" for friendly micro-organisms where these bacteria can grow and hang out. Then if needed, they can save your colon if it was invaded by pathogens. Meaning if your normal colon environment was disturbed by a pathogen, your appendix might be able to get it back to normal.
