Abstract
Background:
The present study investigated the level of 5-Hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) in perforated and non-perforated appendicitis patients. The importance of this issue is in timely diagnosis of complications of acute appendicitis such as perforated appendicitis or gangrene.
Methods:
This study was performed in a prospective diagnostic method. The patients with complaints of acute appendicitis who were referred to tertiary medical center were included in the study during 2020–2021. Patient information such as age, gender, type of appendicitis, and the level of urinary metabolite 5-HIAA were recorded. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and diagnostic accuracy of 5-HIAA were investigated. The data were statistically analyzed by SPSS v.27.
Results:
A total of 150 patients were studied in two groups, 40 patients in the perforated appendicitis group and 110 patients in the acute appendicitis group. The average age of patients in the perforated appendicitis group was 28.8 ± 6.07 and in the acute appendicitis group was 29.6 ± 6.96. 94 (63%) were male and 56 (37%) were female. No significant difference was observed in terms of age and gender between the two groups. Based on the results, the difference level of 5-HIAA between the two groups of acute and perforated appendicitis was significant (P < 0.001). Also, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 82%, 62%, 75%, and 77% respectively.
Conclusion:
This study shows that 5-HIAA in patients with perforated appendicitis increases significantly more than in the early stages of acute appendicitis. Also, it has relatively good sensitivity for diagnosing appendicitis.