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appendix

From: Encyclopedia Britannica | Date: 2007 | Copyright information

[in full vermiform appendix] Vestigial hollow tube attached to the cecum of the large intestine. The human appendix, usually 3–4 in. (8–10 cm) long and less than 0.5 in. (1.3 cm) wide, has no digestive function. Its muscular walls expel their own mucous secretions or any intestinal contents that enter it. Blockage of the opening may prevent expulsion and cause appendicitis: fluids collect, bacteria propagate, and the appendix becomes distended and inflamed; tissue in the appendix begins to die, and the organ may burst, causing peritonitis. Its symptoms may begin with moderate pain in the upper abdomen, about the navel, or all over the abdomen. Nausea and vomiting may then develop. The pain may shift to the right lower abdomen. Fever is usually present but is seldom high in the early phases. Differentiating acute appendicitis from other causes of abdominal pain requires careful examination. Treatment is removal of the appendix (appendectomy).For more information on appendix, visit Britannica.com.

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Related newspaper, magazine, and trade journal articles from HighBeam Research

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	The appendix does have a use - re-booting the gut Newspaper article from: The Independent - London; 10/8/2007; 491 words ; ...medical orthodoxy has maintained that the appendix is useless, warranting attention only...immunologists . The US scientists found that the appendix acted as a "good safe house" for bacteria...organisms to regrow without help from the appendix, the researchers said. But in earlier... Read more
	Bigger than a bellyache: an appendix attack could mean real trouble.(YOUR BODY) Magazine article from: Current Health 2, a Weekly Reader publication; 12/1/2008; ; 700+ words ; ...GI) tract, or digestive system. The appendix is a finger-shaped pouch, about a quarter...intestine. Appendicitis occurs when the appendix becomes blocked. That causes inflammation and swelling, and the appendix can fill with pus and bacteria. About... Read more
	Appendix has a function? Newspaper article from: Deseret News (Salt Lake City); 10/6/2007; ; 492 words ; ...the troublesome and seemingly useless appendix: It produces and protects good germs...journal this week. For generations the appendix has been dismissed as superfluous. Doctors...without them. And when infected, the appendix can turn deadly. It gets inflamed quickly... Read more
	Probe that can remove your appendix without surgery. Newspaper article from: The Daily Mail (London, England); 1/22/2008; 242 words ; PATIENTS may soon be able to have their appendix removed without anoperation. Scientists...body, cuts off theblood supply to the appendix and then vacuums it out. The device...a device thatcan reach and remove the appendix through a tiny hole in the colon. The... Read more
	Report: Appendix has purpose after all Newspaper article from: Telegraph - Herald (Dubuque); 10/6/2007; ; 479 words ; ...the troublesome and seemingly useless appendix: It produces and protects good germs...journal this week. For generations the appendix has been dismissed as superfluous. Doctors...fine without them. And when infected the appendix can turn deadly. It gets inflamed quickly... Read more
	is the appendix really useful?(Front) Newspaper article from: The Virginian Pilot; 10/6/2007; 513 words ; ...the troublesome and seemingly useless appendix: It produces and protects good germs...journal this week. For generations, the appendix has been dismissed as superfluous. Doctors...fine without them. When infected, the appendix can turn deadly. It gets inflamed quickly... Read more
	Fed: appendix linked to bowel disease Newspaper article from: AAP General News (Australia); 10/18/2000; 429 words ; ...General News (Australia) 10-18-2000 Fed: appendix linked to bowel disease By Rada Rouse...disease patients may improve if their appendix is taken out, new research suggests...idea following fresh evidence that the appendix, an organ once believed useless, could... Read more
	Why do we have an appendix? I got mine out when I was nine.(Ask Doctor Cory) Magazine article from: U.S. Kids; 9/1/1998; ; 115 words ; Dear Dr. Cory: Why do we have an appendix? I got mine out when I was nine. Jenni Witney Tuscaloosa, Alabama Dear Jenni: The appendix is part of a system in our body called...infections. The funny thing is that the appendix doesn't seem to have any use in humans... Read more
	My brother has been feeling sick all day. When my mother said that he might have something wrong with his appendix, I asked her what it was. She said "It's an organ that doesn't do very much and some people have it taken out." But when I asked what it did do she said she didn't know. Can you help me?(Ask Doctor Cory) Magazine article from: Jack & Jill; 9/1/1998; ; 232 words ; ...he might have something wrong with his appendix, I asked her what it was. She said, It...Berkshire, United Kingdom Dear Isley: The appendix is part of your body's immune system...infections. The funny thing is that the appendix doesn't seem to have any use in humans... Read more
	Ovoid Appendix on US Rules Out Acute Appendicitis.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included) Magazine article from: Family Practice News; 2/1/2000; ; 272 words ; ...out if an ultrasound reveals that the appendix is ovoid shaped over its entire length...determined in a study of 382 patients. The appendix on ultrasound can appear as various shapes...100 control patients in his study, 37 appendixes were ovoid, 33 were round, and 30 were... Read more

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Related entries from encyclopedias, dictionaries, and thesauruses

	appendix Book article from: The Oxford Companion to the Body appendix The appendix is more correctly known as the ‘vermiform appendix’, meaning worm-like. It is present only in man, certain anthropoid apes, and the wombat (a nocturnal, burrowing Australian marsupial). Many herbivores are provided... Read more
	appendix Book article from: A Dictionary of Biology appendix (vermiform appendix) An outgrowth of the caecum in the alimentary canal. In humans it is a vestigial organ containing lymphatic tissue and serves no function in normal digestive processes. Appendicitis is caused by inflammation of the appendix. Read more
	appendix Book article from: A Dictionary of Zoology appendix In some Mammalia , a vermiform, cul-de-sac termination to the caecum...large intestine is involved in the digestion of cellulose, the caecum and appendix are large. In most Primates it is absent and the caecum ends bluntly. In Hominoidea , the caecum is very small, but the appendix is large. Read more
	vermiform appendix Book article from: A Dictionary of Nursing vermiform appendix ( verm -i-form) n. see appendix . Read more
	appendix Book article from: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology appendix (pl. -ices, -ixes XVI. — L. appendix , -ic- , f. appendere (see prec.). Hence appendicitis XIX. Read more