Clinicopathological evaluation of parasitic infections in appendectomy specimens

Abstract

Background: This study aimed to determine the incidence of parasitic infections in adult patients who underwent appendectomy and to evaluate the clinicopathological features of parasitic infections in appendectomy specimens. Methods: Patients who underwent appendectomy between January 2018 and December 2019 with a pre-diagnosis of acute appendicitis (AA) and reported parasitic infection in appendectomy specimens were evaluated retrospectively. Demographic data, comorbidities, clinical and radiological findings, laboratory results, surgical methods, length of hospital stay, postoperative complications, and histopathological examination reports were analyzed. Results: 939 adult patients underwent appendectomy with a pre-diagnosis of AA. Upon detecting parasitic infection in the histopathological examination, thirty-one (3.3%) patients were included in this study. Twenty (64.5%) patients were women, and the overall mean age was 31.9 years (18-70 years). Twenty-three (74.2%) patients had Enterobius vermicularis, and 8 (25.8%) patients had Tenia saginata. On laboratory examination, the mean percentage of monocytes was only higher in the Taenia saginata group (0.80 vs. 0.66; p=0.039). Both ultrasonography findings and tomography findings were similar in both groups. The morbidity rate of the study was 12.9% (n=4). There was no difference between the two groups regarding the length of hospital stay and morbidity. Conclusions: Parasitic infections may cause symptoms mimicking acute appendicitis. It should be kept in mind that even in patients with a diagnosis of parasitic intestinal infection, symptoms may have been caused by acute appendicitis, not solely due to parasitic infection.