Appendicitis....You Suck!

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

Sooooo.....I ended up with appendicitis after work on Thursday evening. At about 8:00pm that night, my abdomen really started hurting me, so I recused myself from the family and tried to lay down and get some sleep.

After about four hours of tossing and turning, vomiting (and not feeling any better as a result), I had the wife run me to the ER.

An agonizingly long sign-in process ensued, followed by an equally long wait to be seen by a doctor. In the meantime, I was given two separate dilaudid doses through my IV, neither of which helped. I was so fatigued as I hadn't slept in over 24 hours at this point.

I told the doctor I thought I might have appendicitis, and he smugly and condescendingly informed me that there was very little chance of that, because of the rapidity of the onset of symptoms and where my pain was located.

I had xrays and was poked and prodded, and they couldn't figure out what was wrong.

Then I had to drink two bottles of nasty stuff over the course of two hours in preparation for a CAT scan, which occurred yet another hour later.

So now its about 6:00am, I'm still in considerable pain, and Mr. Know-It-All Doctor comes back in and quietly informs me that the CAT scan revealed that i have appendicitis and that I will have surgery soon. If I wasn't in so much pain I would have told him off a little because he laughed off the possibility hours earlier, but I let it slide.

So I got surgery, spent all day yesterday and part of today in the hospital, and now I am home. I had a laparoscopic procedure, so I have three neat little holes in mah belly. My abdomen is still swollen from all the CO2 they inflated it with, and I'm pretty sore, but surprisingly A-OK.

My first surgery ever. The pain I'm in now is orders of magnitude easier to deal with than what I had two nights ago.

Man, that shit hurts!

:)

[ZipperJJ]

Man, appendicitis scares me. I am not aware of anyone in my family that has ever had their appendix removed, but it seems like one of those scary, painful things that can happen to anyone.

Glad you are feeling BETTER finally. Sorry it had to be such a suck from start to finish, tho :( Heal good!

[MitzeKatze]

I told the doctor I thought I might have appendicitis, and he smugly and condescendingly informed me that there was very little chance of that, because of the rapidity of the onset of symptoms and where my pain was located.


I have never had to deal with appendicitis for real, but one of my children had a scare and the pediatrician suspected appendicitis precisely because of the rapidity of onset (in addition to other symptoms). That doctor sounds like a bit of an ass to me.

I am glad you are feeling better and hope you have a speedy recovery from surgery as well.

[Khadaji]

Sending out a wish of a speedy recovery!

[Surly Chick]

Wait til the CO2 disperses to you limbs - no fun! But I'm glad you're ok and they figured out what was wrong in a relatively short time. It took them three freaking months to diagnose my gall stones during which time I actually passed one. Talk about ouchy!

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

Man, appendicitis scares me. I am not aware of anyone in my family that has ever had their appendix removed, but it seems like one of those scary, painful things that can happen to anyone.

Glad you are feeling BETTER finally. Sorry it had to be such a suck from start to finish, tho :( Heal good!

It has always scared me as well. I've felt twinges in that area of my lower abdomen before, but nothing like this before...nothing.
My Dad and my brother have both had theirs removed. My Dad had his removed in the 1950's! I can only imagine the butchery then compared to now, and my brother's was rife with gangrene so he wasn't eligible for the surgery I had, so he hurt a lot too.

I have never had to deal with appendicitis for real, but one of my children had a scare and the pediatrician suspected appendicitis precisely because of the rapidity of onset (in addition to other symptoms). That doctor sounds like a bit of an ass to me.

I am glad you are feeling better and hope you have a speedy recovery from surgery as well.

That doctor was an ass. I had waited in the room they had put me into for over a half an hour (and the ER waiting room was EMPTY...small hospital, Lawrenceburg, Indiana, not much going on) and one time when I had a particularly bad bout of pain (after the painkillers were administered) and I yelled "FUCK this hurts!" and only a moment later, in he comes, lecturing me about how there are other people in here, I shouldn't be yelling like that...after I'd lain there in misery for a half an hour...and then proceeded to lecture me in his condescending manner about how he didn't think it could be appendicitis...what a jerk.

And the nurse after she'd come in and given me the second dose of dilaudid mentioned that the doctor was reluctant to approve it for me because "they get drug addicts in here faking pain for a fix"...that shit pissed me off!

Sending out a wish of a speedy recovery!

Thanks...so far, it seems s l o w...

Wait til the CO2 disperses to you limbs - no fun! But I'm glad you're ok and they figured out what was wrong in a relatively short time. It took them three freaking months to diagnose my gall stones during which time I actually passed one. Talk about ouchy!

Oh great! Something else to look forward to!
;)

[Baracus]

Oh great! Something else to look forward to!
;)
Here is something else. One of the mothers in my daughter's daycare class recently went to the ER in the late morning for abdominal pain and had her appendix out that evening. The next week she got a letter from her insurance company that her claim was denied because it wasn't really an emergency and she could have has it done as an outpatient the next day. :rolleyes:

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

Here is something else. One of the mothers in my daughter's daycare class recently went to the ER in the late morning for abdominal pain and had her appendix out that evening. The next week she got a letter from her insurance company that her claim was denied because it wasn't really an emergency and she could have has it done as an outpatient the next day. :rolleyes:

That's some shady shit right there. I don't know how appendicitis could be weaseled out from under as a definition of an emergency, seeing as how it can, you know...KILL YOU if you wait too long...

:rolleyes:

[MacTech]

Ahh, another member of the Loyal Order of No Appendix, you've already passed your initiation and paid your dues, I see...

Seriously, hope you heal quickly, my bout with Appendicitis was equally fast and unexpected, you know that scene in Alien, where John Hurt's character has a Chestburster pop out of his chest, yeah, mine felt like that would have felt, only worse...

It didn't help that my appendix was located a little behind where it "should" have been, making diagnosis difficult

Sounds like they removed yours laproscopically as well, did they dose you up on that nasty Heparin anticoagulant as well?, that stuff is pure, distilled EVIL!

Like you, it was my first (and hopefully *last*) time under the knife, the anesthetics were interesting to say the least, one minute I'm chatting with the surgeon, the next, I'm waking up in the recovery room, from my perspective, time simply *stopped*

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

Ahh, another member of the Loyal Order of No Appendix, you've already passed your initiation and paid your dues, I see...

Seriously, hope you heal quickly, my bout with Appendicitis was equally fast and unexpected, you know that scene in Alien, where John Hurt's character has a Chestburster pop out of his chest, yeah, mine felt like that would have felt, only worse...

It didn't help that my appendix was located a little behind where it "should" have been, making diagnosis difficult

Sounds like they removed yours laproscopically as well, did they dose you up on that nasty Heparin anticoagulant as well?, that stuff is pure, distilled EVIL!

Like you, it was my first (and hopefully *last*) time under the knife, the anesthetics were interesting to say the least, one minute I'm chatting with the surgeon, the next, I'm waking up in the recovery room, from my perspective, time simply *stopped*

They mentioned giving me Versed (Verseid....Versaid...??) and I remembered it from my youngest son's hernia surgery. They gave this kid some cherry-flavored Versed (?) and I have to say...it was pretty damn funny. That child was laughing at everything, drooling on himself, completely stoned out of his gourd...and then he got wheeled away and the "fun times" stopped as I watched them administer hard-core anesthesia on his little body....

Anyway, I recall them giving me that, me being wheeled around in my hospital bed, cracking jokes with the nurse, and then **poof** waking up in my room.

It was pretty damn surreal. And man, my stomach hurts!

[panache45]

My appendix ruptured when I was 28, and I came very close to dying from it, thanks to the incompetence of the ER staff of Long Island College Hospital. I'm so glad I survived that; I almost didn't.

[Shark Sandwich]

My appendix became inflamed and didn't rupture, but leaked for what the doctor said was a few weeks. They put me under for what was supposed to be the hour-long surgery but when I woke up six hours later, they were putting me in a hospital bed. I had a catheter, and couldn't move my legs because they'd given me an epidural. Apparently since my appendix had leaked, I'd had a mass about the size of a lemon in my abdomen, and they had to remove some of my bowel and 8 inches of small intestine. I had 54 staples in my belly, starting at the navel and working..down. Spent 6 days in the hospital recovering, and lost 15 lbs. because I had to gradually be reintroduced to solid food.

What scared me the most was afterwards and I started realizing how difficult it really is for doctors to actually diagnose appendicitis. It started as a mild side pain, which I thought was a pulled muscle from playing golf. Over the course of 4 days, it got to the point where it hurt to stand up straight. I had gone to the doctor the day before I was admitted to the hospital and he sent me home because I wasn't presenting all the symptoms of appendicitis (everything but vomiting), and like an idiot I didn't want him to do a rectal exam to confirm. I wish I would've, because when I finally did get to the hospital I had everyone who worked there shoving stuff up my ass but I was in so much pain from the appendicitis, I didn't care. I just wanted to get fixed, and NOW.

[Drain Bead]

I had an appendectomy 5 years ago. It was a Saturday, my husband had to go to something for work, and he asked me to fold laundry while he was gone. I had made a big chorizo omelet for brunch for us, and started to feel kinda sick afterwards. I putzed around for a while, ate some Tums, played some WoW, but then thought "Man, I should go lie down, I really don't feel well." My husband got home around 6ish and I had not folded the laundry. Argument ensued, in which I said "I was lying down for most of the day, I'm not feeling well." I tried to help him fold the laundry, but was sort of doubled over while I folded it. "Lie down," he says, "but we're going to the ER in two hours if you're still not feeling well." I told him I'll go at 11:00 because I'm not paying a $250 co-pay for indigestion. Eventually we settle on 9:30. At 9:00, I'm still feeling unwell, so I get in the shower. He followed me, reading off symptoms of appendicitis from WebMD on his laptop as I showered. I keep telling him "I don't have a fever, I'm not vomiting..." and I continue arguing with him up until the moment that I black out. Seriously, in the middle of the conversation I think I said something like "I feel woozy" and the next thing I remember, I'm coming to on the floor and he's holding me and attempting to call 911 on his cell phone. After I woke up, he helped me get dressed and I went to the hospital without complaint. Two CAT scans later, the second with contrast because they couldn't tell if it was my appendix or an ovarian cyst the first go-round, they figured out it was my appendix and I went into surgery at about 6AM.

Had it happened two months later, I would have been on my nice government work medical insurance and it would have cost me $50. As is, it cost me about $8000 in co-pays, deductibles, and stuff that wasn't covered for various reasons (apparently, even though it was necessary for diagnosis, the 2nd CAT scan was not covered at all). Blargh.

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

My appendix ruptured when I was 28, and I came very close to dying from it, thanks to the incompetence of the ER staff of Long Island College Hospital. I'm so glad I survived that; I almost didn't.

My appendix became inflamed and didn't rupture, but leaked for what the doctor said was a few weeks. They put me under for what was supposed to be the hour-long surgery but when I woke up six hours later, they were putting me in a hospital bed. I had a catheter, and couldn't move my legs because they'd given me an epidural. Apparently since my appendix had leaked, I'd had a mass about the size of a lemon in my abdomen, and they had to remove some of my bowel and 8 inches of small intestine. I had 54 staples in my belly, starting at the navel and working..down. Spent 6 days in the hospital recovering, and lost 15 lbs. because I had to gradually be reintroduced to solid food.

What scared me the most was afterwards and I started realizing how difficult it really is for doctors to actually diagnose appendicitis. It started as a mild side pain, which I thought was a pulled muscle from playing golf. Over the course of 4 days, it got to the point where it hurt to stand up straight. I had gone to the doctor the day before I was admitted to the hospital and he sent me home because I wasn't presenting all the symptoms of appendicitis (everything but vomiting), and like an idiot I didn't want him to do a rectal exam to confirm. I wish I would've, because when I finally did get to the hospital I had everyone who worked there shoving stuff up my ass but I was in so much pain from the appendicitis, I didn't care. I just wanted to get fixed, and NOW.

I had an appendectomy 5 years ago. It was a Saturday, my husband had to go to something for work, and he asked me to fold laundry while he was gone. I had made a big chorizo omelet for brunch for us, and started to feel kinda sick afterwards. I putzed around for a while, ate some Tums, played some WoW, but then thought "Man, I should go lie down, I really don't feel well." My husband got home around 6ish and I had not folded the laundry. Argument ensued, in which I said "I was lying down for most of the day, I'm not feeling well." I tried to help him fold the laundry, but was sort of doubled over while I folded it. "Lie down," he says, "but we're going to the ER in two hours if you're still not feeling well." I told him I'll go at 11:00 because I'm not paying a $250 co-pay for indigestion. Eventually we settle on 9:30. At 9:00, I'm still feeling unwell, so I get in the shower. He followed me, reading off symptoms of appendicitis from WebMD on his laptop as I showered. I keep telling him "I don't have a fever, I'm not vomiting..." and I continue arguing with him up until the moment that I black out. Seriously, in the middle of the conversation I think I said something like "I feel woozy" and the next thing I remember, I'm coming to on the floor and he's holding me and attempting to call 911 on his cell phone. After I woke up, he helped me get dressed and I went to the hospital without complaint. Two CAT scans later, the second with contrast because they couldn't tell if it was my appendix or an ovarian cyst the first go-round, they figured out it was my appendix and I went into surgery at about 6AM.

Had it happened two months later, I would have been on my nice government work medical insurance and it would have cost me $50. As is, it cost me about $8000 in co-pays, deductibles, and stuff that wasn't covered for various reasons (apparently, even though it was necessary for diagnosis, the 2nd CAT scan was not covered at all). Blargh.

And that's what scared me the most about it. It seemed my ER doctor didn't look at appendicitis early on and rule it out as one of the first things...instead it was pancreatitis (sp?), gall bladder issues, stomach flu, etc.

Appendicitis can kill you pretty rapidly if not caught in time, and for something so potentially deadly, its such a routine operation.

[Markxxx]

Were you eating "jagged metal Krusty-O's" those are a leading cause of appendicitis :)

[aruvqan]

mrAru's mom is a nurse. he had a stomach ache on a monday, and it really didn't get much better, when he was waiting for the bus friday morning it exploded :eek: She kept thinking he had just picked up some bug that had been passing around school.

he has several immense scars now, he had gangrene, the whole 9 yards of complications.

[Morelin]

When I had appendicitis, I had no symptoms, other than pain in the right area and 'the walk' as my mother called it. A decade before my dad had appendicitis and the ER doc pointed out to my mother the way my dad was walking as a classic sign. All the tests were inconclusive. As they were wheeling me in for surgery the next morning, the surgeon assured me he would remove the ovarian cyst that was the real cause(that showed up on one of the tests).

When I woke up, I'm told my appendix was in imminent danger of rupturing. I still have no idea if anything was done about the cyst.

[VunderBob]

RE: the CO2 used to inflate the abdomen. I had a laparoscopic gastric bypass, and the second night home all that gas decided to exit at once at 3 AM. I spent 20 minutes doing a near constant fart. Depending on the mood I'm in when I tell that story, it was either the coolest or most disgusting thing I ever did.

It never migrated to my arms, BTW

[Mama Zappa]

I have never had to deal with appendicitis for real, but one of my children had a scare and the pediatrician suspected appendicitis precisely because of the rapidity of onset (in addition to other symptoms). That doctor sounds like a bit of an ass to me.
...
Yeah... time for letter writing (I've twice written letters to hospital admins and they've been well-received both times). That guy could have let you die for lack of care.

I wonder why they don't do ultrasounds for appendicitis - seems to me like this would be much faster than drinking contrast stuff and waiting for X-rays. Then again, ultrasounds don't work for everything.

Glad you're doing OK now. I found my lap surgery for gallbladder was less painful than folks have reported their gallbladder attacks to be (I got off lightly during the actual acute attack) so I can well believe your appendix hurt more while it was still in you!

[Mama Zappa]

RE: the CO2 used to inflate the abdomen. I had a laparoscopic gastric bypass, and the second night home all that gas decided to exit at once at 3 AM. I spent 20 minutes doing a near constant fart. Depending on the mood I'm in when I tell that story, it was either the coolest or most disgusting thing I ever did.

It never migrated to my arms, BTW
I vote for "coolest". :D

With other organs, the inflation gas doesn't have such a ready means of escape. My arms were so sore after the gallbladder surgery, the pain was far worse than the surgery pain.

[panache45]

And that's what scared me the most about it. It seemed my ER doctor didn't look at appendicitis early on and rule it out as one of the first things...instead it was pancreatitis (sp?), gall bladder issues, stomach flu, etc.

Appendicitis can kill you pretty rapidly if not caught in time, and for something so potentially deadly, its such a routine operation.
I literally staggered into the ER one night, then had three doctors examine me and conclude that I was merely constipated. They sent me home, telling me to come back the next day if it still bothered me. I did what they said because, after all, they were doctors. I was also thinking an appendectomy is "routine" surgery, so it's no big deal if I wait another day. Meanwhile, the pain and nausea were so intense that I don't even remember what happened until the next day, when I returned to the ER . . . and passed out. They took one look at me and immediately rushed me into surgery. My appendix had totally ruptured, and I had peritonitis. They said if I'd waited another hour, I'd be dead.

Then the surgeon botched the "routine" surgery, and I had to go to another surgeon (several times) to fix the mistake.

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

RE: the CO2 used to inflate the abdomen. I had a laparoscopic gastric bypass, and the second night home all that gas decided to exit at once at 3 AM. I spent 20 minutes doing a near constant fart. Depending on the mood I'm in when I tell that story, it was either the coolest or most disgusting thing I ever did.

It never migrated to my arms, BTW

I would have been my two little sons' hero for a day. I also vote for cool, since nothing else happened and you were okay as a result. That's the stuff of family lore right there.
:D

Yeah... time for letter writing (I've twice written letters to hospital admins and they've been well-received both times). That guy could have let you die for lack of care.

I wonder why they don't do ultrasounds for appendicitis - seems to me like this would be much faster than drinking contrast stuff and waiting for X-rays. Then again, ultrasounds don't work for everything.

Glad you're doing OK now. I found my lap surgery for gallbladder was less painful than folks have reported their gallbladder attacks to be (I got off lightly during the actual acute attack) so I can well believe your appendix hurt more while it was still in you!

Yeah, my Mom suggested the same thing when I relayed the story to her while I was in the hospital. It hadn't occurred to me while I was recovering, but I just might. I'm more pissed about the doctor's lack of bedside manner than anything else, since it appears that from some angles, appendicitis is harder to diagnose than I initially suspected.

I literally staggered into the ER one night, then had three doctors examine me and conclude that I was merely constipated. They sent me home, telling me to come back the next day if it still bothered me. I did what they said because, after all, they were doctors. I was also thinking an appendectomy is "routine" surgery, so it's no big deal if I wait another day. Meanwhile, the pain and nausea were so intense that I don't even remember what happened until the next day, when I returned to the ER . . . and passed out. They took one look at me and immediately rushed me into surgery. My appendix had totally ruptured, and I had peritonitis. They said if I'd waited another hour, I'd be dead.

Then the surgeon botched the "routine" surgery, and I had to go to another surgeon (several times) to fix the mistake.

Damn...that sucks. I suppose its more of a "routine surgery" when its like mine was, before any bursting/gangrene than after those things occur. I'm feeling pretty good today...I think I might risk a shower instead of the sponge/washcloth baths I've been giving myself.

[MLS]

IANAD. But I've had a couple of them tell me appendicitis is one of the more difficult things to diagnose because the syptoms (a) are a lot like many other things and (b) vary considerably from one person to the next.

My daughter had appendicitis when she was a pre-teen. We waited most of the day for the bellyache that woke her up to go away. Based only on the office exam our pediatrician had her admitted immediately to the hospital for observation and evaluation. After a surgeon checked her out, I was told that it might be the appendix, but then, again, it might not. The pain was not in exactly the right place, plus she was a bit too young for it, her blood tests showed a slight elevation of whatever would indicate appendix infection, but not a lot.

The surgeon said they could operate and risk having performed unnecessary surgery with all its attendant unpleasantness. Or they could not operate and risk that it was infected after all and have a worse emergency later. Hmmm.... uncomfortable kid for no reason or dead kid for no reason. Not a tough choice. She had the surgery, the thing was infected, and she healed up perfectly.

Frankly, I don't understand why it should be any other way. I mean, yes, there are risks with any surgery, but the possible consequence of guessing wrong and not operating are a heck of a lot worse.

[Unauthorized Cinnamon]

Wait, where was the pain then? Because from what I've read, classic appendicitis pain starts in the middle of the abdomen (mine felt like the worst indigestion ever), then later moves to the lower right quadrant. So unless your pain was on the left side, I don't see how abdominal pain can really be "in the wrong place for appendicitis." In either case, that doctor sounds like a major league asshole.

I'm glad you got taken care of and are feeling pretty OK. In my case, waking up from the anesthesia to find that awful stomach ache gone was a beautiful thing, regardless of surgery pain, etc.

At my follow up, my surgeon told me "Now you can go hiking in the Himalayas and not worry about getting appendicitis." I felt like I was in that joke that goes, "Doctor, will I be able to play the piano?" :D

Take care. Go for a little walk if the gas pain gets too bad - that seems to help.

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

Wait, where was the pain then? Because from what I've read, classic appendicitis pain starts in the middle of the abdomen (mine felt like the worst indigestion ever), then later moves to the lower right quadrant. So unless your pain was on the left side, I don't see how abdominal pain can really be "in the wrong place for appendicitis." In either case, that doctor sounds like a major league asshole.

I'm glad you got taken care of and are feeling pretty OK. In my case, waking up from the anesthesia to find that awful stomach ache gone was a beautiful thing, regardless of surgery pain, etc.

At my follow up, my surgeon told me "Now you can go hiking in the Himalayas and not worry about getting appendicitis." I felt like I was in that joke that goes, "Doctor, will I be able to play the piano?" :D

Take care. Go for a little walk if the gas pain gets too bad - that seems to help.
It was as you describe. It was kinda at the "top" of my abdomen and it hurt pretty much all around there. It never really had a chance to migrate to my lower right side AFAICT.

And like you, waking up after the surgery I DID feel enormously better, despite the surgical pain. Heck, I feel a LOT better today than I did even yesterday.

You know, sometimes, being on salary ain't half-bad...
:D

[Morelin]

I wonder why they don't do ultrasounds for appendicitis - seems to me like this would be much faster than drinking contrast stuff and waiting for X-rays. Then again, ultrasounds don't work for everything.



I had an ultrasound. All it found was the ovarian cyst. Plus, it hurt.