The Alvarado Score is accurate in pregnancy: a retrospective case–control study

Background Acute appendicitis is the most frequent abdominal condition that requires non-obstetric surgical intervention during pregnancy. This study aims to scan pregnant patients operated on for acute appendicitis to evaluate the efficiency of using the Alvarado Score (AS) for diagnosis. Methods Our study included 48 pregnant patients who were pre-diagnosed with acute appendicitis and operated on at our department of general surgery from January 2010 to July 2016 and whose files were accessed. Fifty-three non-pregnant female patients of reproductive age who were operated on for appendicitis during the same period were included in the study as the control group. The patients in both groups were divided into two groups based on their AS total score being 7 and ≥ 7. Results The mean age of the 48 pregnant patients was 28 (19–42) years, while the mean age of the 53 control patients was 31 (18–45) years. Among pregnant and non-pregnant women, about a third of patients had an AS