The usefulness of routine histological examination of appendicectomy specimens in a South African tertiary centre

Background. It is accepted surgical practice to send all appendicectomy specimens for histological examination, but the usefulness and cost associated with this practice have not been established in our setting, a tertiary hospital in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa (SA). Objectives. To determine the histological diagnoses of appendicectomy specimens in our centre, and the cost of identifying an alternative histological diagnosis requiring further treatment. Methods. Clinical data on patients undergoing appendicectomy for suspected acute appendicitis during the study period December 2012 - August 2015 were retrospectively retrieved from the hybrid electronic medical registry. Histological data were then extracted from the National Health Laboratory Service database. The cost of an appendicitis histology report was sourced from a private laboratory service. Results. A total of 290 patients were identified during the study period. Males had a significantly higher risk (p