GC: n

S: UMMS – http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/condition/appendicitis (last access: 25 November 2016); MYCLINIC – https://goo.gl/xwdoz4 (last access: 25 November 2016).

N:1. 1886, from Latin stem of appendix, in the medical sense, + -itis “nflammation”.

2. Inflammation of the vermiform appendix.

3. In 1735, Dr. Claudius Amyand performed the world’s first successful appendectomy, at St. George’s Hospital in London. The patient was an 11-year old boy whose appendix had become perforated by a pin he had swallowed. The first successful operation to treat acute appendicitis was performed soon after, in 1759 in Bordeaux. General anesthesia was not available until 1846, so these operations required many assistants to restrain patients during what were undoubtedly very painful procedures. Surgical treatment for appendicitis began in earnest during the 1880s. Although doctors struggled to decide who should undergo the knife – some patients would recover on their own without surgery – surgical technique and anesthesia had improved outcomes to such an extent that surgery would rapidly became the gold standard approach. By the end of the 20th century, laparoscopic surgery replaced open surgery in most cases, and laparoscopic appendectomy is now considered one of the safest, lowest-complication surgical procedures performed today.

4. Epiploic appendagitis, a relatively rare entity, has been diagnosed with increasing frequency during the era of multislice CT. Acute epiploic appendagitis may clinically mimic acute diverticulitis or acute appendicitis, as patients frequently present with acute onset, lower-quadrant pain though they are commonly afebrile and without leukocytosis.

5. Cultural Interrelation: We can mention the films The Seven Year Itch (1955) directed by Billy Wilder, and Madeline (1998) directed by Daisy von Scherler Mayer. In the first one, Richard Sherman talked about his nurse, Miss Finch, and said: “Last winter when l had my appendix out… …do you remember the nurse?”.

S: 1. OED – http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=appendicitis (last access: 25 November 2016). 2. TERMIUM PLUS – https://goo.gl/CEExu1 (last access: 25 November 2016). 3. CUDS – http://columbiasurgery.org/news/2015/06/04/history-medicine-mysterious-appendix (last access: 25 November 2016). 4. MD – http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/769706_4 (last access: 25 November 2016). 5. RT – https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1083410-madeline/ (last access: 25 November 2016); IMDb – https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048605/characters/nm0427700 (last access: 20 April 2024); Script – http://www.script-o-rama.com/movie_scripts/s/seven-year-itch-script-transcript.html (last access: 20 April 2024).

SYN:
S:

CR: appendectomy, appendix, peritonitis.