Comparative study of Laparoscopic Appendectomy and Open Appendectomy in a Tertiary Care Hospital in South Karnataka, India

Introduction: Appendicitis is a common cause of acute abdomen and appendectomy is the treatment of choice, which can be done either by open or laparoscopic approach. Controversies till exist as to which is the better choice among the two surgical procedures for treating appendicitis. So, this study was conducted to compare the laparoscopic appendectomy with open appendectomy. Materials and Methods: This study was done in a tertiary care medical hospital in South Karnataka. 100 consecutive patients who were diagnosed to have appendicitis and requiring surgical intervention were selected after obtaining their informed consent to participate in the study. 50 patients each were randomly chosen to undergo either open or laparoscopic appendectomy. Data was collected from each patient on the basis of clinical, preoperative findings as well as postoperative recovery and follow up. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS Version 14.0. Results: 59% of patients were male and 60% were under 25 years of age. Nausea and vomiting were the common symptoms. Laparoscopic appendectomy took more time than open appendectomy (42.8 mins Vs 54.3 mins). Pain was significantly lower in laparoscopic appendectomy compared to open appendectomy. Post operative complications, length of stay, time to return back to work were all lesser among patients who underwent laparoscopic appendectomy. Conclusion: The laparoscopic appendectomy was better than open appendectomy with respect to wound infection rate, pain score, lesser use of antibiotics and analgesics, duration of postoperative hospital stay and return to normal activity.