Histopathological analysis of appendix biopsies in patients at a tertiary care centre

Abstract

Background: One of the most common problems associated with the abdomen is appendicitis. The acute cases of appendicitis are generally treated with appendectomy. The surgical process of removal of appendix, that is, appendectomy, helps in diagnosis of appendicitis. However, the appendix which looks normal macroscopically can actually harbour pathological findings when histopathological assessment is done. Appendiceal tumours or any type of parasitic function can occur in a normal looking appendix. Methods: This is a retrospective, descriptive and a cross-sectional study of all the patients with appendix biopsies seen in Bhaktivedanta Hospital and Research Institute from January 2018 till March 2022. Ethical approval from the Institutional Ethics Committee was obtained for this study. Histopathology reports of appendix biopsies of patients required at Bhaktivedanta Hospital and Research Institute were included in the study. Results: Out of the total 359 cases of appendix biopsies, 209 (58.2%) cases of acute appendix were found to be the most common. Males accounted for 216 (60.17%) cases of appendix biopsies which are in majority in comparison to 143 (39.83%) cases of female appendix biopsies. Based on age grouping, the age group of 11-20 showed majority (25.1%) cases of appendix biopsies. Conclusions: All appendix specimens should be sent for histopathological analysis to document the removal of appendix, to know the pathology diagnosis and to rule out malignancy in the appendix.