Accuracy of Sonography in Diagnosis of Acute Appendicitis

"nIntroduction: To assess the efficacy of ultrasound in the diagnosis of acute appendicitis in clinically equivocal cases of suspected acute appendicitis. "nMaterials and Methods: A total of 110 patients suspected to have acute appendicitis and were admitted to the department of surgery of Golestan and Emam Khomeini hospitals, with an abdominopelvic US focusing on the RLQ using the graded compression technique. Positive US was defined as at least one of the criteria of puylaert. The sonographic data were correlated with clinical, operative and pathological findings. "nResults: Graded compression US results were analyzed and remarked as: 92.7% sensitivity, 94.5% specificity, 93% accuracy, 94.4% positive predictive value and 92.5% negative predictive value. "nConclusion: US is an accurate, safe and reliable method in the diagnosis of suspected cases of acute appendicitis. It can help to minimize negative appendectomies and perforation rates. Keywords: sonography, acute appendicitis