Chronic appendicitis: two case reports

• Published in: Journal of medical case reports Vol. 16; no. 1; p. 51
• Main Authors: Holm, Nanna, Rømer, Maria Unni, Markova, Elena, Buskov, Laura Katrine, Hansen, Ann-Brit Eg, Rose, Michala Vaaben
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 09-02-2022; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Abdomen; Abdominal Pain - diagnosis; Abdominal Pain - etiology; Adult; Antibiotics; Appendectomy; Appendicitis; Appendicitis - diagnostic imaging; Appendicitis - surgery; Appendix; Case Report; Case reports; Chronic appendicitis; Chronic Disease; Communicable diseases; Delayed Diagnosis; Diagnosis; Diagnosis, Differential; Family medical history; Feces; Female; Fever; Gastroenteritis; Hemoglobin; HIV; Human immunodeficiency virus; Humans; Immune system; Inflammation; Male; Medical imaging; Metronidazole; Pain; Patients; Polymerase chain reaction; Radiologic imaging; Recurrent abdominal pain; Surgery; Thrombosis; Tomography; Tropical diseases; White people; Young Adult; Chronic appendicitis; Case report; Radiologic imaging; Recurrent abdominal pain
• ISSN: 1752-1947; 1752-1947
• DOI: 10.1186/s13256-022-03273-2

Chronic appendicitis is a condition unfamiliar to many physicians and is often referred to as a controversial diagnosis. This can give rise to diagnostic delay.
We present two cases of chronic appendicitis: a Caucasian female aged 21 years and a Caucasian male aged 34 years. The patients had different clinical presentations, which led the initial investigations in very different directions-tropical infectious disease and possible malignancy, respectively. In both cases, radiological imaging was the key investigation leading to the final surprising diagnosis.
With these two case stories, we wish to draw attention to chronic appendicitis as a possible differential diagnosis in younger patients with chronic or recurrent abdominal pain, particularly if the pain is located in the lower abdomen and is accompanied by fever.