BACKGROUND: To study appendicitis evolution grade in comparison with intraoperative inspection and pathological results. Also a relationship between age and hospital stay length is reviewed. METHODS: Retrospective analysis of 199 patients submitted to appendicectomy between October 2003 through August 2004 using: age, sex, length of hospital stay and evolution grade of inflammatory process according to pathological examination was studied. RESULTS: Analysis was possible only in 182 cases. Distribution by sex showed a higher incidence in men (54.4%); median age was 20 years and the most prevalent age range was between 11 - 20 years (36.22%). Hospital median stay length was 3 days. There was a significant difference in hospital stay length according to age and patients older than 60 years; they had the longest hospital stay length. Pathologic examination showed 73.62% as suppurative appendicitis, normal appendix was 13.73%, gangrenous was 7.14%, catarrhal was 4.49% and neoplasm was found in 0.54%. Diagnosis of appendicitis was confirmed in 86.24%. Hospital stay length and age were not significant different between acute appendicitis evolution grades. CONCLUSION: Acute appendicitis is more frequent in young male patients. Older patients stay longer in hospital; however appendicitis evolution grades showed neither correlation with age nor length of stay.
Appendicitis; Acute disease; Length of stay; Prognosis
