ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: To assess the prevalence of complicated appendicitis (including gangrene, abscess and perforation) after the outbreak of the 2019-nCoV epidemic and to identify the risk factors associated with complicated appendicitis. METHODS: Two groups were established in the study consisting of: one group for cases of acute appendicitis before the 2019-nCoV epidemic (before January 1, 2020; pre-epidemic group) and another group for those after the epidemic outbreak (after January 1, 2020; epidemic group). These two groups were compared in terms of demographic and clinical characteristics, prevalence of complicated appendicitis, and treatment intention. A multivariate analysis model using binary logistic regression was constructed. RESULTS: A total of 163 patients were included in this study, with 105 in the pre-epidemic group and 58 in the epidemic group. In the epidemic group, the interval from the onset of symptoms to admission was 65.0 h, which is significantly longer than the 17.3 h interval noted in the pre-epidemic group (P < 0.001). The prevalence of complicated appendicitis after the epidemic outbreak was significantly higher than before the outbreak (51.7% vs. 12.4%, P < 0.001). In addition, the epidemic group had a lower score of patient's intention to seek treatment than the pre-epidemic group (9.5 ± 2.7 vs. 3.4 ± 2.6, P < 0.001). Based on the multivariate analysis, the risk factors for complicated appendicitis included the time from symptoms onset to admission (OR = 1.075) and the patients' intention to receive treatment (OR = 0.541). CONCLUSION: Complicated appendicitis was more common in patients with acute appendicitis after the outbreak of the 2019-nCoV epidemic.