Table 1.
Baseline characteristics
| Placebo group (n = 34) | Antibiotic group (n = 37) | |
|---|---|---|
| Sex | ||
| F | 13 (38) | 15 (41) |
| M | 21 (62) | 22 (60) |
| Age (years)* | 39 (19–58) | 34 (20–59) |
| BMI (kg/m2)† | 28.1 (6.7) | 28.0 (5.3) |
| Body temperature (°C)† | 37.2 (0.7) | 37.0 (0.5) |
| VAS score for pain on admission† | 4.6 (2.8) | 4.9 (2.7) |
| Leucocyte count (×109/l)‡ | 10.5 (8.5–13.7) | 11.6 (9.4–14.1) |
| Neutrophil count (×109/l)‡ | 7.7 (5.0–10.9) | 7.7 (5.5–11.4) |
| C-reactive protein (mg/l)‡ | 27.5 (10.2–53.0) | 23.0 (11.0–45.0) |
| Appendiceal diameter on CT (mm)† | 10.4 (2.7) | 10.6 (2.3) |
| Duration of symptoms on admission (h)‡ | 19 (13–30) (n = 30) | 14 (10–30) (n = 34) |
| Study hospital | ||
| Turku | 18 | 19 |
| Tampere | 7 | 8 |
| Kuopio | 3 | 5 |
| Oulu | 4 | 3 |
| Helsinki | 2 | 2 |
Baseline characteristics are shown for all randomized patients including early withdrawals, but excluding one patient with complicated acute appendicitis revealed by CT on admission, who was randomized erroneously. Values in parentheses are percentages unless indicated otherwise; values are *median (range), †mean(s.d.), and ‡median (i.q.r.). VAS, visual analogue scale.