The value of C-reactive protein (CRP) determinations in patients with suspected acute appendicitis.

The clinical usefulness of the preoperative determination of C-Reactive protein (CRP) in patients with suspected acute appendicitis was studied in 156 consecutive patients undergoing acute appendicectomy. The CRP values were found to increase with an advancing stage of the appendiceal inflammation found at operation and the length of the preoperative phase of illness. Eight out of 66 patients with a phlegmonous appendix found at operation showed no signs of bacterial infection, as revealed by an increased C-Reactive protein level. These results suggest that a preoperative quantitative determination of the C-Reactive protein in patients with suspected acute appendicitis might add a valuable parameter to the laboratory profile in this condition and can be used for the selection of those patients who would benefit from a preoperatively administered antibiotic prophylaxis. Furthermore, these results might support the theory that an obstruction of the appendix lumen is the most important factor in the genesis of acute appendicitis.