Efficacy of Ultrasonography in the Evaluation of Suspected Appendicitis in a Pediatric Population

Accuracy of ultrasonography for diagnosis of pediatric acute appendicitis: The experience of a Senegalese tertiary hospital

“…In uncomplicated cases, sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV were 80%, 73.3%, 75% and 80% respectively, which are within the ranges reported in the literature [6][7][8][9][12][13][14] . Taking in account these results, it is necessary to retain the diagnosis basing on both findings of physical examination and US results.…”

“…However, US has some limitation: important layer of fat tissue in obese children, digestive distension due to air accumulation and last, but not least, experience of the operator [5] . Overall, sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV of US for diagnosis of acute appendicitis in pediatric population have been reported as ranging from 58% to 97.1% [6][7][8][9] , 41.7 to 97.7% [6][7][8][9] , 77 to 95% [6,7] and 39 to 61.5% [6][7][8] , respectively. However, authors reported that these results were different when comparing uncomplicated and complicated appendicitis, with lower sensitivity in the latter case [10,11] .…”

Ultrasound of paediatric appendicitis and its secondary sonographic signs: providing a more meaningful finding

“…1 Since the 1980s, ultrasound has been commonly used to diagnose appendicitis with a range of reported sensitivities (71.2-99%) and specificities (91.3-98.2%). [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] There is currently some debate about the best imaging modality or combination of modalities to accurately and costeffectively diagnose the condition. Studies have variously advocated ultrasound in all presentations, 10 as a first-line modality, [11][12][13] and even inappropriate as it delays treatment.…”