Abstract

Objective: To determine rate of negative appendectomies in our setup and to look for the effectiveness of Alvarado score.
Methodology: This prospective observational study of 6 months duration was carried out at department of general surgery, Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar from January 2013 to June 2013. Patients were diagnosed using Alvarado score and those of score more or equal to 7 were operated and included in this study.
Results: A total of 153 patients had an Alvarado score of more than 7 and underwent surgery. Out of these, 98 were males and 55 were females. 137(89.54%) patients had positive appendicitis on histopathology and the remaining 16 (11%) had normal appendix.
Conclusion: The accuracy of the Alvarado score in diagnosing acute appendicitis in an Asian population has been disappointingly low.

Key words: Alvarado score, negative appendectomies, appendicitis