Mucocele of the appendix. Review of 10 cases

Purpose. The purpose of our work was to assess the value of abdominal sonog raphy (US) and computed tomography (CT) in the preoperative diagnosis of ap pendiceal mucocele. Material and methods. We retrospectively reviewed 10 cases of mucocele of t he appendix, 7 cases without pseudomyxoma peritonei, and 3 cases with pseud omyxoma peritonei. All cases were investigated radiologically by plain film and US, barium enema was performed in 3 cases and CT in 5 cases. Results. Mucoceles of the appendix are rare and their clinical presentation is not specific. US confirms the appendicular involvment, but often poses the differential diagnosis with acute inflammation, abscess or localized ap pendicular peritonitis. CT appears as a mandatory examination since it allo ws accurate preoperative diagnosis period. In this series, the diagnosis wa s made preoperatively in the 5 cases where CT had been performed. Conclusion. US is useful to confirm the abnormal pattern of the appendix bu t does not allow accurate diagnosis of mucocele. CT is more specific and ac curate for diagnosis of mucocele of the appendix.