ACUTE RETROCECAL APPENDICITIS

In view of the fact that during the past 10 years nearly four thousand articles have crowded the medical literature on the general subject of appendicitis, it is indeed strange that its most dangerous form, namely, acute retrocecal appendicitis, has been so largely neglected. The classic article by Brunn on acute pelvic appendicitis has done much to direct attention to the relation existing between the position of theappendix and acute inflammation. Acute retrocecal appendicitis is largely responsible for the atypical signs and symptoms in cases of acute appendicitis that deceive the incautious diagnostician and cause many deaths. In my previous studies it has been proved that most adherent retrocecal appendixes derive their abnormal position from previous attacks of acute appendicitis. Wakeley studied the position of the human vermiform appendix in 10,000 cases. He reported that in 65.28 per cent of his series the appendix was either free or adherent