If you’ve had abdominal pain recently, you may have wondered how to tell if you have appendicitis at home.
Appendicitis is the most common cause of abdominal pain requiring surgery in the United States, and approximately 5 to 9 percent of Americans have appendicitis at some point in their lives. According to the National Institutes of Health.
One of our 2019 studies Acute appendicitis was identified in 70% of children with abdominal pain whose symptoms worsened after jumping.
Anyone can get appendicitis, but it’s most common in people in their 20s and 30s. research result.
Although the “jump test” has not been validated in adults, there are other simple maneuvers you can try at home to determine whether you need to see a doctor for abdominal pain.
Early signs of appendicitis
The appendix is a finger-shaped sac that branches near where the small and large intestines meet, near the lower right side of the abdomen. Appendicitis usually causes pain in the lower right quadrant of the abdomen, but symptoms may be different in some people, such as pregnant people.
Appendicitis occurs when the inside of the appendix becomes blocked. Appendicitis can be caused by a variety of things, including stool, bacteria, and rarely, tumors. Surgery is usually required when the appendix becomes inflamed and swollen.
Although any type of severe abdominal pain requires immediate medical attention, these symptoms are most commonly associated with appendicitis. According to the Mayo Clinic.
- Pain that starts suddenly in the lower right quadrant of the abdomen
- Pain that starts suddenly near the belly button and spreads toward the lower right abdomen
- The pain worsens when you move your abdomen by walking or coughing.
- Nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite
- worsening fever
- bloating, gas
- constipation, diarrhea
How to exclude appendicitis at home?
There are several tests you can try at home to see if you might have appendicitis, including the knee test and the hamburger sign.
However, these operations alone are not sufficient to diagnose appendicitis. Proper diagnosis requires a detailed history of the cause of abdominal pain, a physical examination, laboratory tests, and imaging studies (usually a CT scan). (Even experienced surgeons may diagnose appendicitis if the medical history and physical examination confirm the diagnosis and it is a true emergency.)
It is also important to note that there is limited research examining the accuracy of these tests when performed by non-medical professionals outside of a medical setting. However, these tests may provide more clues that you may have appendicitis.
hamburger sign
Almost all cases of acute appendicitis begin with abdominal pain.
Typically, the pain starts in the belly button and moves to the lower right abdomen. In some cases, the pain may start in the lower right abdomen and then become sharp and persistent. The pain often worsens within a few hours.
Eventually, patients don’t feel like eating anything and often complain of nausea and vomiting after experiencing abdominal pain.
If the patient is experiencing abdominal pain but has an appetite, appendicitis is unlikely. According to previous research. Surgeons call this the hamburger sign.
Dunphy’s signature
As the disease progresses, patients often develop a fever as the inflammation spreads from the appendix to the lining of the abdominal cavity known as the peritoneum.
When the inflammation spreads to the peritoneum, simple abdominal movements, such as walking, coughing, or jumping, usually cause abdominal pain.
At this stage, one simple test you can do at home is to cough. If your abdominal pain worsens after you cough, this is known as Dunphy’s sign and may indicate appendicitis.
leg test
The appendix is located near a muscle known as the iliopsoas, so moving the appendix causes inflammation to irritate this muscle.
With you lying face up, have someone place their hand just above your right knee. Press down on your right foot, feeling some resistance. If the appendix is inflamed, this movement causes the psoas muscle to rub on the swollen appendix, causing pain.
lobsing sign
Lie on your back with your head up. Press firmly on the left lower abdomen, opposite where the appendix is. If you experience worsening pain in the lower right quadrant, this is a sign that the lining of your abdominal cavity may be inflamed.
rebound pain
While lying on your back, press firmly on your lower right abdomen. If you feel a sharp pain when you quickly remove your hand, this is called rebound tenderness and may be a sign of appendicitis.
Keep in mind that if any of these movements cause pain, this simply suggests that you may have acute appendicitis, as pain in the lower right quadrant can also be caused by other illnesses. please. Also, even if these movements do not cause additional pain, you may have appendicitis.
Appendicitis can be confused with other diseases
Organs on the right side of the body near the appendix, such as the kidneys, parts of the large intestine, ovaries and fallopian tubes, can cause pain similar to appendicitis, even though the symptoms are completely different.
Diseases that cause similar pain include:
- Inflammatory bowel disease known as Crohn’s disease
- Tubo-ovarian abscess, infection of the ovaries and fallopian tubes
- ruptured ovarian cyst
- endometriosis
- pelvic inflammatory disease
- ectopic pregnancy
- Kidney stone
- Epididymitis, swelling behind the testicles
- testicular torsion, the testicle twisting and cutting off the blood supply
If you are concerned about abdominal pain, see your doctor to rule out acute appendicitis.