does chronic appendicitis exist?

[Ms_Makita]

Here I go again looking for answers! at 16 was told I had IBS,wasnt too bad nothing I couldnt handle or tolerate..have some bad days constipated or the big D with cramps but didnt hit me like what im having now for last 7 months,usually had relief after bm, now its severe abdominal pain,belly button area, low left and right side pain,,sometimes radiates upper area and pelvic/rectal pain,stabbing pain,not crampy.Lost almost 60lbs,metal taste in mouth,heartburn,bloating,bad nausea,hair loss,appetite loss due to the pain (was on ensure but just now starting solid food..nothing agree's with me)bm's alternate,fever and night sweats,trapped gas (i havent been able to pass gas in months)alot of bowel noises and rumbling.After bm still continue to have urge to pass gas or stool but cant,Many trips to er,nothing can be found wrong,but this mimics appendicitis or  sometimes partial bowel obstruction,few times a month wake from sound sleep with "gassy diarrhea attacks" feel clammy/sweating/ feel like im gonna die.In April was in hospital for 3 days for this pain.Have had many procedures,tested for porphyria,celiac lactose intolerent,sprue,negative,mercury/toxin poison now.waiting on results.Many catscans,pap/pelvic exams,and ultrasounds,
Colonscopy-normal?,gi noted on biopsy some inflammation,said its ibs.
endoscopy-normal
hida scan-gallbadder is ok
laparscopy-no endometriosis
kidney ivp-no stones
I'm 28 and use to be active,I had to quit my job (cosmetologist) because most of time I cant even stand up,any ideas or similar experiences appreciated,ty (:

[mommabear464]

Our 10 year old son suffered for weeks with exactly the same symptoms everyone here is describing.  When I finally took him to the local Children's Hospital ER for the 3rd time (after countless dr. visits on the side and every test in the book), the finally admitted him because he had lost five pounds in three weeks and looked terrible - healthy kids are not supposed to lose weight because they cannot eat!  Anyway, the staff was amazing and promised they would figure out what was wrong before they sent him home.  But, when all tests showed nothing to be wrong, they scratched their heads in wonder.  By this time, the surgeons decided to do exploratory surgery - while the gastro doctor was convinced it was his appendix, the surgeons disagreed completely.  But, the agreed to go in to "check it out".  Well, low and behold, it was his appendix AND a bowel stone.  It was a horrible, terrible journey and we are SO glad we fought for surgery.  As soon as he awoke from surgery, the pain he had been suffering was gone!  There IS A SUCH THINGS AS CHRONIC APPENDICITIS - our son lived it and we witnessed it.

[merileegal]

I just had my appendix out 4 weeks ago and the diagnosis came back :acute and chronic appendicitis". At my post op last week, my surgeon said, "Your stomach has been bothering you for awhile, hasn't it." I told him that it's been bothering me for most of my life off and on. I'm 61 and my first attack was in high school. My doctor then thought it might be an appendicitis and decided to just watch it since I didn't have all the classic symptoms, only the stomach pain.

Long story short, I've had a few attacks through the years and I would just tough it out to see if it got worse or would go away. For the last few years, my stomach was uncomfortable almost all of the time. I was beginning to think I had cancer of the stomach or something terrible like that. The last episode started out the same but just wouldn't go away. I didn't have a fever, was only slightly nauseous, my white blood count was normal, and the pain was more on the left side of my naval and radiated up through my heart and into my left kidney. I thought I was either having a heart attack or some kind of other organ problem.

After hours of tying to tough it out I finally went to the doctor. She checked for pain in the right side and it hurt much less than the left side when she pushed around so she sent me for a cat scan. When the results came back, it showed my appendix was 3X enlarged and was long. They said it was an early appendicitis and it needed to come out.

What I learned from all of this, is if you have any kind of acute pain anywhere in the abdomen, and you don't fit any of the classic symptoms of an appendicitis, it still could be an appendicitis. Find a doctor you can trust and takes you serious. So yes, as diagnosed from the post op lab report, there is such as thing as chronic appendicitis.

[missfaerie83]

Hi,
Echoing most people's symptoms, but I'm at the end of my tether after 8 years of chronic pain, sometimes worse than others and recently  very bad again, having had trips to the ER with nothing more than "you might have a bladder infection" but they couldn't find anything wrong? Anyway I'm determined to get this sorted and convince a surgeon to take my appendix out! What were the journal documents you took to the Doctor? I'm doing some research now, but if you have some links that could help, that would be wonderful :)

[binchicago658]

Exactly. We know our bodies better than any doctor.  My surgeons and doctors told me after my appendectomy that my previous pains and stomach attacks were not related to my appendix because appendicitis is "acute" and manifests in 12-18 hours.  I said "but how could that be?  I've had the exact same pains/attcks every single month for 6 months and as soon as you remove my appendix I am completely cured.  Yet those previous pains/attacks had nothing to do with my appendix?"  WRONG.  My stomach attacks were literally ruining my life.  I am so glad they finally removed my appendix.  

[Stacey1011]

Your story is very similar to mine.  I suffered with pain in my abdomen for approximately 10 years, been through every test possible with results of nothing wrong.  I do get ovarian cysts, but all along I thought it was my appendix.  I had laparoscopy surgery two years ago to see what was going on they took pictures of my appendix and stated they were good plus all the cysts had already burst so they wouldn't take anything out.  I had asked for a hysterectomy and for them to remove my appendix.  They did nothing.  This past weekend I started getting pain on Friday but didn't go in because everytime I have they do nothing.  Sunday after getting out of the shower I decided I needed to go in cuz the pain was so bad.  The Dr. came in and saw me and as soon as he felt my abdomen he figured it was my appendix.  I told him I have been suffering for years with this.  He stated that he didn't think I had chronic appendicitis over the years that it had to be something else.  He ordered a CT scan and when the results came back it said I have chronic appendicitis.  He couldn't believe that no one would have removed them in all these years.  I was sent to a hospital where they would do the surgery.  I had to argue with the surgeon to take them out.  He didn't think it would help and wanted to admit me and run a bunch of tests.  I refused stating that I have had all those tests done and they find nothing.  I stood my ground and had the surgery.  He came in the next morning to check on me and was shocked when I told him I had no pain.  He said my appendix appeared to look normal and didn't think that was the problem.  He also said that I was full of cysts and that I need a hysterectomy.  I told him I tried to have them do that 2 years ago and no one would listen.  Now maybe they will, so once I get healed up from this surgery I will go have a hysterectomy.  Sometimes it helps to stand up for yourself after all no one knows your body more than you do!

[binchicago658]

For 6 months, once per month I would have extreme "attacks" as I came to call them.  It always started with stomach pains (all over the abdomen) that got increasingly worse throughout the day until I was spending the evenings curled up on my floor crying in pain and vomiting.  These episodes would last 6-8 hours and I would wake up sore from vomiting, but like nothing had ever happened.  

3 different times during these attacks I went to the ER where I was told I had GERD and/or Gastritis or IBS.  I constantly keep track of my food intake and nothing ever seemed to trigger these attacks.  They would happen every single month though and usually around the 20th (weird and probably coincidental I know).  Doctors just kept telling me to take Prevacid or Prilosec and to limit greasy foods and alcohol.  But these attacks kept happening.  

My last trip to the ER, I demanded a full abdominal scan.  I was naseous and vomiting all over the ER room, so they knew something was seriously wrong.  They started giving me antibiotics and pain killers right away.  Doctors came in right after the scan and said they were taking me in to remove my appendix.  After the surgery, I was told my appendix was "completely necrotic."  Dead as dead can be.  They also told me all my previous pains had nothing to do with my dead appendix and were completely unrelated.  I know this to be false, because the pains were the EXACT SAME EACH AND EVERY TIME.  The only difference this trip to the hospital was that they actually did something about it and removed my appendix.  I haven't had a single abdominal pain since.  Chronic appendicitis is a very real situation.