Category Archives: Appendix

Appendicitis

Appendicitis

Acute Appendicitis

Clinical presentation

- young adults with periumbilical to right lower quadrant pain, nausea, vomiting, fever, increased white blood cells

Gross appearnace

- fibrinopurulent exudate on serosa, perforation, fecalith

Histology

- acute and chronic inflammation of varying age with fibrosis and granulation tissue if late, xanthogranulomatous inflammation

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Appendix Histology

Appendix Histology

- same 4 layers as gut
- large bowel type epithelium with goblet cells
- lamina propria has irregularly distributed crypts (glands)
- rich lymphoid tissue in mucosa and submucosa

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Mucocele Appendix

Mucocele Appendix

- a mucocele is basically a viscus filled with mucin

- important thing about appendiceal mucoceles is not to confuse them with mucinous cystadenomas of the appendix, which can look deceptively benign

- any adenomatous change in the epithelial lining then you do not have a mucocele but a mucious cystadenoma

- if mucinous cystadenoma pushes beyond the muscularis mucosa, without any obvious invasion or desmoplastic reaction, this is a mucinous cystadenocarcinoma of the appendix

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Carcinoid syndrome

Carcinoid syndrome

Symptoms of Carcinoid Syndrome

- skin flushing
- diarrhea

- right sided heart disease due to fibrosis of the tricuspid valve and stenosis of the pulmonary valve

- bronchoconstriction

Detection of Carcinoid Syndrome

Serotonin secretion is confirmed  by measuring the 24 hour urine levels of 5-HIAA (5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid), which is a breakdown product of the hormone, serotonin.

Management of Carcinoid Tumors

Low risk Carcinoid

Local excision for small lesions < 2 cm, with no mesoappendix invasion and no lymphovascular invasion.

Uncertain behavior if > 2 cm or lymphovascular invasion, no mesoappendix invasion.

High risk lesions have at least a cecal resection. These high risk tumors are found at the base of the appendix with caecal margin involvement.

Higher risk lesions require hemicolectomy. These include carcinoid lesions above 2 cm or with invasion of mesoappendix.

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