Role of Alvarado score and biological indicators of C-reactive protein, procalicitonin and neopterin in diagnosis of acute appendicitis.

BACKGROUND: The determination of a definitive preoperative diagnosis of acute appendicitis (AA) remains a challenge; however, delays in diagnosis increase complication rates. The aim of this study was to investigate the contribution of the Alvarado score (AS) alone and the AS combined with the use of the biological indicators of C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT) and neopterin (NP) in the diagnosis. METHODS: Serum was collected from 100 patients who were admitted to the general surgery clinic of Istanbul University, Cerrahpasa Medical Faculty between March 4, 2014 and July 29, 2015 with the pre-diagnosis of AA and who agreed to take part in the study. The serum samples were stored at -70°C. The patients were divided into 2 groups: AA-positive (n=60) and AA-negative (n=40). The AA positive group was divided into subgroups of complicated (n=11), uncomplicated AA (n=49) and the AS, CRP, PCT, NP levels were compared. RESULTS: The study population consisted of 45 men (45%) and 55 women (55%), with a mean age of 32.8+-13.7 years (range: 18-92 years). There was no significant difference between the groups in age and gender. There were 24 patients with an AS ≤4 (3 had surgery), 35 patients with an AS of 5-7 (22 had surgery), and 41 patients with an AS of 8-10 (38 had surgery). Three of the 63 patients who underwent surgery were diagnosed with a normal appendix. The serum CRP, PCT, and NP measures were found to be inadequate to make an AA diagnosis alone, these values increased the sensitivity and specificity of the AS. The biological indicators were also significant in differentiating between the complicated and uncomplicated AA groups (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Although the AS is useful, additional testing and clinical approaches are valuable to inform the diagnostic procedure. When considered alone, serum CRP, PCT and NP values are insufficient for a diagnosis of AA. However, they increased the diagnostic value of the AS and can be helpful in distinguishing complicated AA cases.

Effect of simultaneous splenectomy on the survival of patients undergoing curative gastrectomy for proximal gastric carcinoma.

PURPOSE: Splenectomy is sometimes performed simultaneously with curative gastrectomy for gastric carcinoma, especially when the tumor originates in the proximal one-third of the stomach or corpus, or when it invades the entire stomach, in an effort to remove metastatic lymph nodes at the splenic hilus and improve survival. However, splenectomy is not an innocent procedure and may cause increased morbidity and even mortality. Moreover, the long-term effect of splenectomy on survival is still controversial. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of simultaneous splenectomy on survival in patients with proximal tumors undergoing curative gastrectomy for gastric cancer. METHODS: The effect of splenectomy on the 5-year survival of 61 patients with proximal gastric cancer (located in the cardia or the corpus) who underwent curative gastrectomy in our hospital between 1989 and 1993 was investigated retrospectively. Of these 61 patients, 38 (62.3%) underwent splenectomy and 23 (37.7%) did not. The relationship between the clinicohistopathological parameters and 5-year survival was retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: No significant differences were found in bivariate analysis between the survival of patients who underwent curative gastrectomy with and those who underwent curative gastrectomy without splenectomy ( P = 0.984). Multivariate regression analysis indicated that only histological grade ( P < 0.003) and lymph node metastasis ( P < 0.001) were independent prognostic factors with or without splenectomy. Splenectomy itself was not an independent prognostic factor ( P = 0.528). CONCLUSION: The findings of this retrospective study showed that simultaneous splenectomy had no effect on the survival of patients who underwent curative gastrectomy for gastric carcinoma. Thus, splenectomy may only be appropriate for patients with direct invasion of the spleen.