Appendicitis in children and young people

摘要

The incidence of appendicitis has its peak between 12 and 18 years of age. It is one of thencommonest, and familiar, emergency surgical conditions in this age group, but it appears to bendifficult to diagnose, since it is one of the most frequent causes of litigation on the basis of ‘missedndiagnosis’. This paper explores why appendicitis should pose such difficulties to clinicians.