Hyperbilirubinaemia a predictive factor for complicated acute appendicitis: a study in a tertiary care hospital

Objective: To study the role of hyperbilirubinaemia as a predictive factor for appendiceal perforation in acute appendicitis. Methods: The prospective, descriptive study was conducted at the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital and the Karachi Medical and Dental College, Karachi, from January 2010 to June 2012. It comprised all patients coming to the surgical outpatient department and emergency department with pain in the right iliac fossa with duration less than seven days. They were clinically assessed for signs and symptoms of acute appendicitis and relevant tests were conducted. Patients were diagnosed as a case of acute appendicitis on the basis of clinical and ultrasound findings, and were prepared for appendicectomy. Per-operative findings were recorded and specimens were sent for histopathology to confirm the diagnosis. SPSS version 10 was used to analyse the data. Results: Of the 71 patients, 37 (52.10%) were male and 34 (47.90%) were female. The age range was 3-57 years, and most of the patients (n=33; 46.5%) were between 11 and 20 years. Besides, 63 (89%) patients had pain in the right iliac fossa of less than four-days duration, while 8(11%) had pain of longer duration. Total leukocyte count was found to be elevated in 33 (46.5%) patients, while total serum bilirubin was elevated in 41 (57.70%). Ultrasound of abdomen showed 9 (12.70%) patients having normal appearance of appendix and 59 (83.30%) had inflamed appendix. Four (5.60%) patients had no signs of inflammation on naked eye appearance per operatively. Histopathology of appendix showed 10 (14.10%) patients had non-inflammatory appendix. Conclusion: Patients with signs and symptoms of acute appendicitis and a raised total serum bilirubin level indicated a complication of acute appendicitis requiring an early intervention to prevent peritonitis and septicaemia. A raised serum bilirubin level is a good indicator of complicated acute appendicitis, and should be included in the assessment of patients with suspected complicated acute appendicitis.