Ultrasound First, Not CT, For Diagnosing Suspected Acute Appendicitis
Main Category: GastroIntestinal / GastroenterologyAlso Included In: MRI / PET / Ultrasound
Article Date: 09 May 2008 - 0:00 PDT
| Patient / Public: | ![]() |
3.67 (3 votes) |
| Health Professional: | ![]() |
4 (1 votes) |
| Article Opinions: | 0 posts |
Color Doppler ultrasound, not CT, should be the first imaging examination for adult patients with suspected acute appendicitis, a new study emphasizes.
The study of 420 medical records found that sonography correctly denied acute appendicitis in 303 of 312 adult patients, meaning it had a 97% specificity rate, said Diana Gaitini, MD, of Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa, Israel. "When the patient does not have acute appendicitis, the negative result of the color Doppler ultrasound examination is highly confident," she said. On the other hand, ultrasound's sensitivity rate was 74%, meaning it missed the diagnosis in 23 of 89 patients, Dr. Gaitini said. Ultrasound was inconclusive in 17 patients.
"We performed CT in 132 patients because the ultrasound examination was inconclusive or the patient was showing classical signs and symptoms of acute appendicitis even though the ultrasound examination was negative," said Dr. Gaitini. CT correctly diagnosed acute appendicitis in 38 of 39 patients (99% sensitivity rate) and correctly denied acute appendicitis in all 92 patients (100% specificity rate), said Dr. Gaitini. CT was inconclusive in one patient.
"CT has a slightly higher specificity rate and a higher sensitivity rate than ultrasound, but ultrasound can help the radiologist make a definitive diagnosis in most patients," Dr. Gaitini said. "The higher diagnostic performances of CT need to be evaluated against its disadvantages. Lack of radiation exposure (which is especially important in a population of mostly young patients), higher availability, lower cost and high specificity of color Doppler ultrasound are the main reasons for trying ultrasound first," she said.
The study appears in the May issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology.
American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS)
44211 Slatestone Ct.
Leesburg, VA 20176-5109
United States
http://www.arrs.org
|
Please rate this article: (Hover over the stars then click to rate) |
Patient / Public: |
or |
Health Professional: |
Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.
Contact Our News Editors
For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.
![]()
Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:
| Back to top | Back to front page | List of All Medical Articles |
| Privacy Policy | Terms and Conditions | © 2009 MediLexicon International Ltd |




