🧩 Crohn’s Disease or Appendicitis — How to Tell the Difference? скачать в хорошем качестве

🧩 Crohn’s Disease or Appendicitis — How to Tell the Difference?

Both Crohn’s disease and acute appendicitis can start suddenly with pain in the right lower abdomen, fever, and elevated white blood cells. But despite the similar presentation, these are two very different conditions — and the distinction is crucial for treatment. 🔹 Appendicitis is an acute surgical emergency — inflammation of the vermiform appendix that typically requires immediate removal. 🔹 Crohn’s disease, on the other hand, is a chronic inflammatory condition that can affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract — and may involve the terminal ileum, mimicking appendicitis. 🩺 Key clues favoring Crohn’s disease: • Gradual onset of pain rather than sharp, sudden pain • Recurrent or long-lasting abdominal discomfort • Diarrhea, weight loss, or anemia in the history • Thickened bowel wall and “creeping fat” on CT/MRI • Intraoperative findings: inflamed ileum, mesenteric lymphadenopathy, skip lesions 🚨 Why it matters: Misdiagnosing Crohn’s as appendicitis can lead to unnecessary surgery — or, conversely, missing appendicitis can result in perforation and peritonitis. In uncertain cases, cross-sectional imaging (CT or MRI) and intraoperative judgment play a decisive role. 💬 Have you ever encountered a patient where the diagnosis wasn’t clear until the very last moment?