1. Biblio: <br />quot;
Appendicitis Symptoms, Causes, Surgery, and Recovery.quot;
WebMD - Better Information. Better Health. Web. 19 Apr. 2010. <http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/digestive-diseases-appendicitis>.<br />quot;
Appendicitis Information (symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment) Written by Medical Doctors.quot;
MedicineNet - Health and Medical Information Produced by Doctors. Web. 26 Apr. 2010. <http://www.medicinenet.com/appendicitis/article.htm>.<br />SUMMARY OF APPENDICITIS<br />Appendicitis occurs when your appendix (this little piece of tissue on the end of the intestine) becomes inflamed and since it’s on the end of the intestine, it is filled with waste materials. Symptoms of appendicitis include never ending stomach pains and throwing up. It may seem like just a stomachache but if it’s continuous, then you might have appendicitis. Appendicitis can occur to anyone, young and old as well. If you go to a hospital, they might use an x-ray or sonogram to see IF you have appendicitis. If you do have it, then doctors immediately put you in surgery because the inflamed appendix could burst and waste materials could spread inside your body. This could lead to another disease, peritonitis, which is fatal without strong antibiotics. There is no definite cause for appendicitis either, it just happens. <br />How to Apply it to Your Life<br />There are several ways to apply what you learned from this interview to real life. For example, if you have prolonged and continuous stomach pains, check a doctor. If you start throwing up as well, you either have really bad indigestion or appendicitis. Don’t think that it’s nothing because your appendix is full of wastes and if you’re not careful, it could die and you could die from the waste in your body. The only way to solve that is to use strong antibiotics. Also you should know if you already had your appendix removed then you WON’T have appendicitis again, obviously. And if you had your appendix removed, you won’t have any “after” symptoms in general. These are all things you can apply in real life.<br />Additional Info:<br />Doctors who even suspect you have appendicitis, they immediately put you in surgery because of the possibility of the appendix rupturing. <br />COMMENTS of Other People Who Had Appendicitis<br />I developed symptoms of upper abdominal pain after dinner one evening. It was a gnawing, burning feeling, but also similar to nausea, however antacids didn't help. It lasted till about 4 a.m., then subsided. Three days later (after eating a small lunch), I again developed upper abdominal pain that would not go away. I thought it was possibly an ulcer or gallbladder problem. It never once hurt on my lower right side, though it was a little achy around my lower back area. I went to the emergency room and the doctor was convinced at first that it was an ulcer. Blood work came back fine, but none of the emergency treatments for ulcers helped the pain, which was becoming more intense by the hour. It reminded me of labor pains, but higher up in the abdomen. Finally, I had a CT scan which showed an inflamed appendix. My appendix was located high up in my abdomen and not in the normal place. Emergency laparoscopic surgery was performed and I actually felt 100% better after waking up in the recovery room. The doctor said I had a very “angry looking” appendix, but luckily it hadn't ruptured.<br />I was awakened out of sleep at 3am on Saturday morning with terrible 'gas pains' and severe bloating. I tried Mylanta, Phazyme, Pepto Bismol and Tagamet without any relief. My entire abdomen was extremely tender. By Sunday, I was feeling a bit better; the tenderness was gone on the left side, but I dare touch my right lower quadrant. I still couldn't walk very fast without discomfort. Every time I took a deep breath I had pain, and I knew since it had been 48 hours I should seek medical attention. I am a registered nurse and thought about appendicitis, but I thought the pain would typically be localized to the right side. I never had a fever. I never had nausea and vomiting either. I sought the information on this web site, and read people's comments. On Monday morning, I went to the E.R., got a CAT scan which revealed appendicitis. After an open appendectomy, and 48hrs of antibiotics I was discharged.<br />