DELAYED PATHOLOGY OF THE APPENDICEAL STUMP - A CASE-REPORT OF STUMP APPENDICITIS AND REVIEW

A case of right lower quadrant pain in a 53-year-old postmenopausal fe male who underwent appendectomy 21 years previously is presented. Recu rrent appendicitis with rupture was noted in the appendiceal stump on exploratory celiotomy after diagnosis by computed tomography scan. Alt hough rare, pathology of the appendiceal stump, whether inverted or no t, is a real entity that can be encountered on laparotomy. Malignancy and hemorrhage can also occur in the appendiceal remnant, but the larg e number of disorders that can cause acute right lower quadrant abdomi nal pain makes appendiceal stump pathology extremely difficult to dete ct preoperatively. Because of the extensive differential diagnosis, ti mely operative intervention for clinical peritonitis in this region sh ould not be delayed.