appendicitis?

[Only me]

I know I've read on this board about how to tell if your child has appendicitis. I had it when I was 18 but mine was atypical. The pain was in the wrong place (My appendix was wrapped around something else). I also had fever and vomiting but I remember having pain for a few days prior.

 

My 16 year old dd has a pain in her abdomen right above where her appendix would be. She is in the middle of her cycle so I doubt it is cramps. I thought perhaps it could be mid cycle pain but it is sharp rather than cramping. She hasn't been exercising or stretching etc. lately so I doubt it is muscular related.

[Maria/ME]

I don't know if there is any special way to tell...however, in my case I had vomiting a day or two before. The pain was in my stomach at first, then kind of migrated down and to my right. Then it became a very sharp insistant pain, but I still had a great deal of vomiting.

 

The Doctor's told me this was very typical. On the other hand I am sure that in many cases a pain on the right is NOT proceeded by vomiting.

 

Have you tried Googling?

[Kathleen in VA]

I had appendicitis when I was 13 and I had excruciating pain (kicking my feet against the wall, absolute misery kind of pain) and non-stop vomiting to the point where there was nothing left. If it is pinching sort of sharp pain, she may actually be feeling her ovary releasing an egg. This happens to me each month. It is uncomfortable, somewhat painful, but nothing like the pain I felt with appendicitis. Just my experience though.

[newbie]

When I had appendicitis I had stomach pain but I felt pretty lousy, like fluey, no vomiting or diahhrea.

[kalanamak]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mittelschmerz

[newbie]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mittelschmerz

 

This is what my dd gets every mo. She says its like a knife is stabbing her. Phew, at least it has a name.

[Only me]

yep, sounds more likely then appendicitis. I'm keeping a close eye on her but she doesn't have a fever or other symptoms just the pain.

 

Thanks for the information.

[MeanestMomInMidwest]

I've seen ER docs ask a kid to jump up and down twice. The theory is if the appendix is inflamed, the kid won't jump the second time, because the pain of jarring the appendix will be too severe.

 

ETA: Of course I've seen a lot of weird stuff....so take it with a grain of salt

[Willow]

I had no vomiting, I just felt so sick and had an appalling pain (centre, above the tummy button!) I didn't realize what it was as the pain was in the 'wrong' place. The test they did was to press down above the tummy button. This did not hurt.

 

Then they released.

 

Then they fetched me down off the ceiling...

 

I also had gangrene in the appendix...and still no vomiting etc.

[Suzanne in ABQ]

I get this too. A sharp pain on one side or the other, mid-cycle and accompanied with cervical mucus. My pain usually lasts about two hours, then goes away on it's own. Interestingly, now that I'm approaching menopause, it's a welcome sign to me. It means I've ovulated, and my body will produce progesterone. If I don't get the ovulation pain, I usually am in for major PMS symptoms (unless I use progesterone cream).

[HSMom2One]

I'd keep my eye on her just in case. Personally, I had a ruptured appendix in 2003 and the only warning I had was a constant pain on my right side for several hours over a span of an afternoon, evening and into the night. I had no nausea or vomiting, but knew that something was wrong and drove myself to the hospital at 4:00 a.m.

 

Blessings,

Lucinda

[Shelly in VA]

I have heard the same thing - if you can jump up and down, you do NOT have appendicitis.

 

Shelly

[elise1mds]

That jumping thing is pretty much true... they can test it with something called a heel tap, which is basically a good, solid thwap on the right heel. Hearing all these appendicitis stories is making my stomach ache, though, so I'm going to bed. Hope your daughter is fine!

[Misty]

If she is in the middle of her cycle, it is probably ovulation pain. It is usually very localized, somewhat sharp, and right in the area of the ovaries. It is usually described as a "twinge" of pain as the egg is being released, but it can last for hours and sometimes the pain is a little more than a twinge. I think it's usually on just one side each month. I get this pain every month so I always know when I'm ovulating.

 

A good book to read on this is Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler.

[SLH in ND]

Please watch your dd very carefully. Later in the evening on April 19, dd had what we thought was her mid-cycle pain that lays her up for 1-2 days. By Tuesday morning I knew it was something else, despite her saying that the pain was not worse than usual. At 4:30 Tuesday afternoon she was in emergency surgery where they found that her appendix had ruptured ... they figured it had been ruptured for 1-2 days. She spent the rest of the week in the hospital and is a very lucky girl.

 

Her pain was not the typical start at the belly button then move to the right side. Constipation is more typical with appendicitis - she had a bout of diarrhea. She was a little warm, but not a temp that would cause worry, and that only started the day she went to the E.R.

 

At any rate, you don't want to panic about your dd, but just keep a close watch on it and be sure to take her temperature! I've heard that if you lie on your back and bend your right leg, pulling it in towards your chest, and the pain is intense in the area of the appendix, that's an indicator of appendicitis. Not sure if that's legit or not, but you could give it a try. I didn't know about that a couple of weeks ago or I'd have had dd try it.

 

I hope all will be well for your dd!

 

Sheri :)

Mom to 3 super daughters and wife, of 15 years, to the greatest hubby in the world!

[kiana]

Doctor told me that if you push in, then release, and it doesn't increase the pain when you press but hurts like heck when you release, it's almost certainly appendicitis.

 

I wish I'd known that before mine ruptured. (I had constipation, then diarrhea, along with nausea and vomiting for a few days before).

[Renee in NC]

When I had appendicitis I had stomach pain but I felt pretty lousy, like fluey, no vomiting or diahhrea.

 

That's how my ds felt.

[TeacherZee]

When I had appendicitis I had stomach pain but I felt pretty lousy, like fluey, no vomiting or diahhrea.

 

This was me. I wasn't hungry at dinner because I felt lousy and then when I was still not hungry the following morning my parents took me to hospital where they took out my appendix.