NCT03570398

Imaging Possible Appendicitis With CT

A Feasibility Randomised Control Trial to Evaluate the Role of Computed Tomography in Patients With Indeterminate Right Iliac Fossa Pain

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 66 (actual)
• Sponsor: South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years – 60 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

Pain in the right lower abdomen is one of the commonest reasons patients present to general surgeons as an emergency. Whether or not such patients have appendicitis is crucial to their assessment. In UK practice, when the diagnosis is unclear, ultrasound scanning (US) is commonly used to investigate the problem. US is very safe but it will only visualise the appendix in the minority of cases. As a result, the sensitivity for diagnosing appendicitis in this setting is probably only 5-30%. Alternatively, computed tomography (CT) is an accurate way of diagnosing appendicitis in over 90% of cases. CT scans are readily available and with modern scanners, high quality images can be achieved with lower radiation doses. Unenhanced scanning avoids the use of contrast media and permits further reductions in ionising radiation exposure.

Detailed description

Pain in the right lower abdomen is one of the commonest reasons patients present to general surgeons as an emergency. Whether or not such patients have appendicitis is crucial to their assessment. In UK practice, when the diagnosis is unclear, ultrasound scanning (US) is commonly used to investigate the problem. US is very safe but it will only visualise the appendix in the minority of cases. As a result, the sensitivity for diagnosing appendicitis in this setting is probably only 5-30%. Alternatively, computed tomography (CT) is an accurate way of diagnosing appendicitis in over 90% of cases. CT scans are readily available and with modern scanners, high quality images can be achieved with lower radiation doses. Unenhanced scanning avoids the use of contrast media and permits further reductions in ionising radiation exposure.

Conditions

• Abdominal Pain

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	unenhanced abdomino-pelvic CT scan	unenhanced abdomino-pelvic CT scan
OTHER	abdominal ultrasound	abdominal ultrasound

Timeline

• Start date: 2016-07-15
• Primary completion: 2018-02-14
• Completion: 2018-02-14
• First posted: 2018-06-27
• Last updated: 2018-06-27

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United Kingdom