PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Nigel J Hall
AU  - Simon Eaton
TI  - Non-operative management of appendicitis in children
AID  - 10.1136/archdischild-2017-313267
DP  - 2017 Oct 24
TA  - Archives of Disease in Childhood
PG  - archdischild-2017-313267
4099  - http://adc.bmj.com/content/early/2017/10/21/archdischild-2017-313267.short
4100  - http://adc.bmj.com/content/early/2017/10/21/archdischild-2017-313267.full
AB  - While appendicectomy has been considered the mainstay of treatment for children with acute appendicitis for many decades, there has been a great deal of recent interest in non-operative treatment (NOT) with antibiotics alone. Initial results suggest that many children with appendicitis can indeed be safely treated with NOT and can be spared the surgeon’s knife. Many as yet unanswered questions remain, however, before NOT can be considered a realistic and reliable alternative to surgery. This review summaries current knowledge and understanding of the role of NOT in children with appendicitis and outlines and discusses the outstanding knowledge gaps.