Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of patients with and without elevated inflammatory markers
| Variable | Total (n = 1303) | Patients without elevated inflammatory markers (n = 23) | Patients with elevated inflammatory markers (n = 1280) | p Value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Age, median (IQR) in years Missing n = 0 |
39 (27-54) | 31 (27-51) | 39 (27-54) | 0.31 | |
|
Sex, male (%) Missing n = 0 |
652 (50.0) | 9 (39.1) | 643 (50.2) | 0.29 | |
|
ASA (%) Missing n = 0 |
I–II | 1254 (96.2) | 22 (95.7) | 1332 (96.3 | 0.59* |
| III–IV | 49 (3.8) | 1 (4.3) | 48 (3.8) | ||
|
Duration of symptoms < 2 or > 2 days (%) Missing n = 30 |
< 2 days | 1032 (79.2) | 16 (69.6) | 1016 (79.4) | 0.18* |
| > 2 days | 241 (18.5) | 7 (30.4) | 234 (18.3) | ||
|
Migration of pain (%) Missing n = 38 |
555 (42.6) | 4 (17.4) | 551 (43.0) | 0.01* | |
|
Nausea (%) Missing n = 31 |
888 (68.2) | 15 (65.2) | 873 (68.2) | 0.63 | |
|
Vomiting (%) Missing n = 27 |
448 (34.4) | 5 (21.7) | 443 (34.6) | 0.18 | |
|
Fever, ≥ 38.5 ° Celsius (%) Missing n = 72 |
238 (18.3) | 1 (4.3) | 237 (18.5) | 0.10* | |
|
Peritonitis (%) Missing n = 48 |
Localized | 1129 (86.6) | 18 (78.3) | 1111 (86.8) | 0.46* |
| Diffuse | 126 (9.7) | 3 (13.0) | 123 (9.6) | ||
|
Inflammatory markers Missing n = 0 |
WBC, mean (SD) 10˄9/L | 13.9 (4.5) | 8.5 (1.8) | 14.0 (4.5) | <0.001 |
| CRP, median (IQR) mg/L | 39 (13-86) | 2 (1-4) | 40 (15-87) | <0.001 | |
|
Time to surgery, median (IQR) in hours Missing n = 22 |
7.1 (4.5-13.6) | 7.1 (3.3-17.8) | 7.1 (4.5-13.5) | 0.82 | |
|
Type of appendectomy ITT (%) Missing n = 0 |
Laparoscopic | 1029 (79.0) | 15 (65.2) | 1014 (19.2) | 0.12* |
| Open | 268 (20.6) | 8 (34.8) | 160 (20.3) | ||
|
Duration of surgery, median (IQR) in min Missing n = 55 |
42 (32–56) | 34 (28–47) | 43 (32–56) | 0.08 | |
|
LOS, median (IQR) in days Missing n = 0 |
2 (1–4) | 2 (1–3) | 2 (1–4) | 0.90 | |
Abbreviations: ASA American Society of Anesthesiologists; IQR interquartile range, ITT intention to treat, LOS length of stay
*Fisher’s exact test was used