• R McKinlay, S Neeleman, R Klein, K Stevens, J Greenfeld, M Ghory, and C Cosentino.
• Department of Surgery, University of Arizona Affiliated Hospitals, 1501 North Campbell Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA.
• Surg Endosc. 2003 May 1; 17 (5): 730-3.

BackgroundStudies comparing intraabdominal abscess (IAA) rates following laparoscopic appendectomy (LA) and open appendectomy (OA) have shown conflicting results.MethodsThe charts of 324 children undergoing appendectomy were reviewed retrospectively to examine the incidence of IAA.ResultsOf the 324 appendectomies, 204 (63.0%) were completed laparoscopically and 119 (36.7%) were performed open. The conversion rate was 0.2% (1/324). Of the 15 (4.6%) IAAs, 7 occurred in the LA group (3.4%) and 8 occurred in the OA group (6.7%) [p = not significant (NS)]. The incidence of IAA for perforated appendicitis for LA was 15% (7/46) and that for OA was 10% (7/70) (p = NS).ConclusionThis study demonstrates no statistically significant difference in the rate of IAA among children following LA and OA. LA can be performed for perforated appendicitis without increasing the risk of IAA.

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