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Introduction: Acute appendicitis (AA) is one of the most common reasons for emergency surgery within the abdominal cavity in Poland. Aim: To compare outcomes of surgical treatment of AA using both classical (OA) and laparoscopic methods (LA). Material and methods: Retrospective analysis of 299 patients (157 men and 142 women) operated on in 2008--2011 due to AA. The following comparisons between LA and OA were done: mean operative time, mean hospital stay after surgery, conversion rate, proportion of LA to OA in successive years. Results: Laparoscopic appendectomy was performed in 170 (56.9%) patients (74 men and 96 women), whereas OA was done in 89 (29.8%) patients (44 men and 45 women). In 13.4% of patients (24 men and 16 women) conversion from LA to OA was done. Mean operating time was 53.4 ±16.1 min (range: 25--100 min) for LA, and 55.4 ±20.2 min (range: 20--140 min) for OA; p = 0.64. Mean hospital stay after LA was 4.0 ±1.2 days (range: 2--9 days), while it was 6.0 ±4.2 days (range: 2--28 days) after OA; p < 0.001. Laparoscopic appendectomy was 24.1% of all appendectomies performed in the year 2008, 54.1% in the year 2009, and in consecutive years 71.7% in 2010 and 65.6% in 2011. Conclusions: Laparoscopic appendectomy method did not require longer surgery times and entailed shorter hospital stays as compared with OA. In our opinion, LA should be the preferred approach in surgical treatment of AA in adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Acute appendicitis is the most common abdominal pathology requiring emergent surgical procedure. For treatment, laparoscopic surgery is commonly performed. For appendix stump closure different procedures are used. Aim: Evaluation of the results of patients in whom the stump of the appendix was closed with a hand-made loop during laparoscopic appendectomy (LA). Material and methods: Patients in whom the stump of the appendix was closed with a hand-made loop during LA were included in the study. Reports of patients were collected from patient files retrospectively. Laparoscopic appendectomy was applied through 3 ports. Two loops were placed in the stump of the appendix. Loop was a modification of the Roeder loop that has been described in the literature and has been shown to be safe. Results: Sixty-one patients were included in the study. Twenty-four of them (39%) were female, 37 of them (61%) were male. The age range is from 13 to 60 (average age is 30) years. During the postoperative period, one surgical wound infection and two intraabdominal abscesses were detected. There was no leakage from the stump of the appendix in any patients. Conclusions: One of the most important components of cost of LA is the technique of closure of the stump. Stapler, endoloop, various clips or a hand-made loop could be used for closure. We recommend using a hand-made loop for closure as an easy, safe and cheap method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]