Appendicitis Clinical Pathway

Pathway Background and Objectives

Abdominal pain is a common reason for presentation to the Emergency Department, pediatric and surgical offices, and appendicitis is a common surgical etiology for this type of pain. Over the years, the American Pediatric Surgical Association has altered their guidelines for the management of pediatric appendicitis to help decrease the following: number of CT scans used for diagnosis, inappropriate antibiotic choices and duration, need for inpatient management post-operatively. Additionally, evidence now supports non-operative management of simple appendicitis under certain conditions. The Connecticut Children’s clinical pathway was developed to ensure an optimal consistent approach to the surgical management of children who present with appendicitis. The specific objectives of this pathway are:

To standardize care of patients with both acute simple (non-perforated) appendicitis, complicated (acute perforated) appendicitis in the pediatric population
To delineate guidelines on when to consider operative vs non-operative management
To standardize care of patients with operative and non-operative management
To provide evidence-based recommendations for key elements of care for appendicitis
To clearly delineate discharge criteria and instructions

Algorithm Educational Module

Disclaimer

The clinical pathways in the above links have been developed specifically for use at Connecticut Children’s and are made available publicly for informational and/or educational purposes only. The clinical pathways are not intended to be, nor are they, a substitute for individualized professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Although Connecticut Children’s makes all efforts to ensure the accuracy of the posted content, Connecticut Children’s makes no warranty of any kind as to the accuracy or completeness of the information or its fitness for use at any particular facility or in any individual case.