Features of appendicitis development in children

Symptoms of appendicitis in children mainly include severe pain and fever.

In young children up to a year, inflammation is rare, most often in teenagers.

In any case, if the child begins to have a strong stomachache, then immediately call the ambulance. Only a doctor with the help of special studies can determine which parts of the process affected the infection.

Types and causes of appendicitis

The human body has several vestigial organs, that is, they do not have vital functions.

To the rudiments, of course, refers to the appendix - the process of the cecum, which is part of the thick intestine.

When a person's diet consisted entirely of untreated plant food, the appendix played a significant role in the digestion process.

Now many people all over the world live without it, because the outgrowth often gets inflamed - this process is called appendicitis. The most common is appendicitis in children or young people.

Statistics state that in most cases inflammation of the appendix of the cecum develops in boys and young men from 10 to 25 years( and sometimes from 5 years).

Particular attention should be given to suspicious symptoms in young children under one year, because they can not show where the stomach is hurting.

We must not forget that it is impossible to determine the type of pathology by itself on the ICD-10 - pain can have a different origin, so you should immediately consult a doctor.

Appendicitis in children and adults can occur in acute and chronic form. In addition, the disease differs in the degree of defeat of the process of the cecum in accordance with ICD-10.

Most often the child has inflammation of the mucous membrane of this organ. In this case, it is a catarrhal appendicitis, the most sparing form of the disease.

If all the layers of the appendix are inflamed and a significant amount of pus is found, then in this case it is already a matter of phlegmonous appendicitis.

Even more dangerous gangrenous form of appendicitis, in which the tissue of the appendage is completely exposed to the process of necrosis.

The most serious type of ICD-10 is perforated appendicitis, in which the appendix tissue ruptures, while its contents, as a rule, pus, enter the epigastrium, infecting the blood.

The causes of appendicitis in children can be so diverse that the development of this disease is almost impossible to predict.

Therefore, it is more appropriate to talk about the presence of some risk factors:

• infectious diseases that affect the cecum of the cecum;
• features anatomical structure of the child;
• ingress of foreign objects directly into the appendix.

Unfortunately, there are many myths associated with appendicitis, and it is important for the parents of the child to understand what can lead to pathology, and what does not.

In particular, scientists have established that physical activity, adherence to a certain diet, an unfavorable family predisposition can not be a direct cause of inflammation of the process of the caecum in the thick intestine in a child. Determine what kind of appendicitis for ICD-10 in a child, can only a doctor after the diagnostic activities.

How does the inflammation of the appendix affect children?

Symptoms of inflammation in children differ slightly from those that are characteristic of adult patients. Particularly attentive to the symptoms should be the parents of young children up to a year and those kids who have not yet learned to speak.

Although it should be noted that at this age, acute appendicitis in children is less common than in a child of an older age. Most often, the pathology develops in a child 10 to 18 years old.

Many people are interested in the doctors, which side of the stomach aches with appendicitis, but there is no universal answer, because because of the peculiarity of anatomy, pain can spread to any area of ​​the abdominal cavity. In most cases, the abdomen hurts from the right side below.

The first signs of appendicitis in children include a sudden onset of pain in the epigastric region, and the stomach may ache from either side, as the process of the cecum is located in each person individually.

In adults, an attack of appendicitis can begin with blunt, pressing pain. In some cases( most often in children from 10 to 12 years to 16 years) the pain may be dissipated - in this case not only the stomach, but also the lumbar region hurts.

Pain in children, initially very strong, eventually becomes more intense, in adults the same pain can become stronger, then weaker.

The exact answer to the question of which side the stomach aches with inflammation can not be given, because it depends on the individual features of the structure.

Pain in a child 10-14 years old inevitably causes a state of acute anxiety until the attacks of panic attacks, the child is almost impossible to keep in place.

Because it hurts the stomach, it is impossible to sleep. Features of inflammation in children from 10 - 12 years to 25 years are the presence of symptoms such as vomiting and nausea.

The child's body temperature almost always rises, most often the temperature is not subfebrile, but can rise to 40 degrees.

The temperature rises due to the fact that the body's immune system responds to the appearance of an infectious inflammatory process.

In addition, the cardiovascular system suffers, reacting to an attack of appendicitis with an increase in arterial systolic pressure and an attack of tachycardia.

Symptomatic symptoms are also seen in the gastrointestinal tract. When attacks of acute appendicitis are often observed such signs of appendicitis in children, as a feeling of nausea, heaviness and bloating.

Diarrhea and general unsatisfactory condition often occur. In some cases, inflammation of the appendage of the cecum leads to the fact that the child has difficulty with urination( especially typical for children 5 to 10 years).

Diagnosis and first aid

The symptomatology characteristic of an acute attack of inflammation of the appendix of the cecum is so difficult for the child to tolerate, that parents usually have no doubts when seeking medical help for further clinical examination. It is not difficult to detect pathology in the laboratory.

First of all, the treating physician should exclude all possible pathological conditions, whose symptoms coincide with an attack of acute appendicitis.

To such pathological conditions in a child of 10-14 years are primarily inflammation of the lungs, acute respiratory viral infection, etc.

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If suspicions of inflammation of the appendage are becoming more evident, then it is necessary to conduct urine testsAnd blood, including general and biochemical, which will show the presence of enzymes, characteristic for the presence of an infectious disease and pathological process.

In addition to tests, the diagnosis of appendicitis in children necessarily involves palpation of the abdominal surface. The surgeon carries out this manipulation very carefully, without producing strong pressure.

Any careless movement can damage the walls of the appendix, resulting in a perforated rupture of the appendage, which in turn can lead to the onset of peritonitis, an acute infection of the blood.

Peritonitis is very dangerous: if the help is not delivered on time, the patient may die from a blood infection or a heart attack caused by blood infection.

Therefore, if the child has a strong stomachache, then the parents should, if not recognize, then suspect appendicitis and call an ambulance.

Usually an accurate diagnosis is possible after the surgeon's scalp palpated the abdominal surface.

But sometimes the attending physician needs a confirmation of the diagnosis. In this case, an additional examination is carried out.

ultrasound in the diagnosis of inflammation of the process of the cecum is gradually replacing computed tomography( CT).However, this diagnosis contains a number of shortcomings.

First, CT is an expensive procedure. Secondly, the rays emitted by the tomograph are heavily carried by the body, especially the children, and also the weakened pathological condition.

What if my parents suspected a child of an appendicitis attack?

First, you need to deliver the child to hospital as soon as possible.

Secondly, do not overheat it - in no case put a heating pad on the stomach, do not wrap it with a warm cloth, since when the local temperature rises, the pathogenic microorganisms begin to multiply especially actively, because of which an infection that struckOutgrowth.

Third, do not give your child painkillers( analgesics, antispasmodics, etc.), as this can prevent the treating doctor from further diagnosing correctly.

Complications and treatment of children

As a rule, with an attack of acute inflammation of the process of the cecum, the treating surgeon performs an emergency operation, during which a complete removal of the appendix from the patient's body occurs.

In rare cases, usually in the presence of contraindications to surgical intervention and with a slight lesion of the mucosa, the pain is simply stopped, while conservative treatment of the infection that caused the attack of appendicitis occurs.

What will be the therapy depends on the extent of infection.

After the operation, the patient at first has to follow a strict diet, he is recommended to follow the medical formula - "cold, hunger and rest".

The operation is usually performed under local anesthesia, that is, the patient is conscious during it. This type of surgical intervention is classified as uncomplicated, the complication happens after it is extremely rare, the patient is ready for discharge after a week of inpatient treatment.

The most serious complication in an attack of acute appendicitis is peritonitis, that is, blood infection.

This condition can only be cured by surgery.

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In addition, despite the fact that the appendix is ​​not a vital organ, its removal can lead to some disturbances in the functioning of the immune system: the patient can begin to suffer more often from various infectious and viral diseases.

In this case, it is very important to pay attention to your health, follow the rules of a healthy lifestyle( diet, sleep, exercise, etc.), because only because of this it is possible to strengthen immunity and combat various infections and viruses.

It should be remembered that any pain, from whatever side it was, can arise from an appendix, so it's important to keep track of your well-being, and if your stomach often hurts, then consult a doctor.