Vol. 2, Issue 2, Part A (2018)

Background and Objective: Acute appendicitis is a prevalent surgical emergency, and appendectomy is the final intervention.  This study seeks to evaluate clinical results, surgical duration, postoperative complications, and recovery between open appendectomy (OA) and laparoscopic appendectomy (LA).
Material and Methods: A prospective study was performed on 60 patients diagnosed with acute appendicitis who had appendectomy at the Department of General Surgery, Tagore Medical College and Hospital, Rathinamangalam, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, from February 2017 to January 2018.  Patients were randomly allocated into two groups: 30 received open appendectomy, and 30 underwent laparoscopic appendectomy.  The collected data encompassed surgical duration, postoperative discomfort, length of hospitalization, time to resume regular activities, and occurrence of problems.
Results: The laparoscopic group had a somewhat longer average operating time (55±10 minutes) than the open group (45±8 minutes).  The group treated with LA had significantly lower scores for postoperative pain (p<0.05).  The hospital stay for patients in the LA group was 2.5±0.8 days, which is lower than the OA group's 4.0±1.2 days. Additionally, patients in the LA group were able to resume their normal activities earlier (7±2 days vs. 12±3 days, p<0.01).  Less wound infections (3% vs. 15%) contributed to the overall decreased complication rate in the laparoscopic group.
Conclusion: Minimized postoperative discomfort, shortened hospital stay, faster return to daily activities, and less wound-related problems are some of the benefits of laparoscopic appendectomy compared to open appendectomy.  It ought to be thought of as the best course of action for appropriate patients.