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Will my son survive burst appendix

Posted , 6 users are following.

susan556
susan556

Im so worried, son had his appendix removed yesterday morning, only just found out like 1/2 hr. ago that the surgeon told him it had infact burst, his now on anitbiotics by drip. He is 37, All i keep reading is people die from this, is there any who dont and are ok after removal.  What can we exspect now?  Desperate mum fad and partner

Sue 

1 like, 41 replies

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  • Yvonne72736
    Yvonne72736 susan556

    Posted

    Dear Susan, I do hope that by this morning you find that there has been some improvement by your son after a few doses of antibiotic. I had my appendix removed which was inflamed just over 4 weeks ago, I wrote on this forum about it about 2 weeks back, if you look up my replies you will find a reply from someone who is 2 years into recovery after a similar episode to your sons. Believe me I totally understand how worrying it is, we never stop being 'Mum' no matter how old our children are do we? My eldest daughter who is 43 picked up pneumonia when she was visiting me when I was in hospital having my appendix removed, so I was really worried about her at the same time as being discharged and trying to recover myself. I DO hope you can get some comfort this morning and that you find him at least a little better when you next visit him, and also that someone else replies to you on this forum who has had the same episode as your lovely son and can help to bolster your nerves and ease your worries.

    All the best to yourself and best wishes to your son.

    • susan556
      susan556 Yvonne72736

      Posted

      Thanks Yvonne for your reply, no we dont stop ever being a mum no wonder what age they are as you say. 

      How dreadful for your daughter to pick up pneumonia as well! didnt realise one could pick up this.

      Also i replied to Faye so please read my post there as to the update on our son.

      Sue x

       

  • lisa91844
    lisa91844 susan556

    Posted

    Hi. I'm 38 my appendix burst last year in fact I was walking round for a day or so with it burst so lucky to be here. The fact is your son now has it removed so will be fine it's only if it was left in. I was in hospital with an infected wound which wouldn't stop leaking else I would of been out a week after the op. Did they do your son through key hole or open surgery.

    Good luck he will be back to himself very soon x

    • susan556
      susan556 lisa91844

      Posted

      Thanks Lisa, no they couldnt do key hole because it had burst and poisons had been leaking prior to this into his bowels that were found to be inflamed as well so they had to do a bigger cut. Ive read that people say and septasemier? could set in the next few days so we are all very worried, They are now pumping in via drip with with antibiotics x
  • faye.l.moore
    faye.l.moore susan556

    Posted

    Hi Susan.

    What a worry for you. I really hope your son starts to feel better soon. It's easy to say not to worry but mummies always do. I had a gangrenous burst appendix, and terrible infection whilst being pregnant. Me and my prem daughter were pumped full of antibiotics - me for about 3 months. I did get a secondary infection in my wound as I had open surgery not keyhole, hence the long stay and obviously my baby arrived very early due to this.

    I would say if they have it out and your son is on antibiotics with no other infection he should be out of the woods.

    When he eats get him things like apricots and nuts, (iron and healthy fats).

    I wish him the fullest recovery and hope your worries are reassured. I hope you can take solace from the fact that I am still here and my 3 month prem daughter made it after we both got septacemia.

    your son will be ok xx please update this post let us know how he is! x

    • susan556
      susan556 faye.l.moore

      Posted

      Thanks Fay thanks for your reply, wehat za woory that must have beenf forr you being pregnant too, so pleased it all énded well for you and your baby daughter.

      This morning they now saying it didnt burst, but had been leaking for months maybe who knows and they found infection had spread to his bowels and like you full of gangrene hence the open surgery.

      How long after your surgery did they realise it had turned to septacemia.?

      He looked alot better this afternoon and are planning to reduce the antibiotics by drip to the tablets, have removed his urine bag too

      This was all due to family dr, negligence too, told him he IBS.!rolleyes

      Susa xx

    • faye.l.moore
      faye.l.moore susan556

      Posted

      Oh Susan how frustrating for you they keep changing the story! Either way burst or leaking you know it got into his bowels. The main thing is he is in antibiotics.

      I wasn't started on antibiotics straight away like your son, I think because I was so heavily pregnant they had to be careful of the baby, so unfortunately I didn't have a head start! My infection set in 4 days post op. My wound had a red ring around it, it was painful and it spread very quickly, by that point I was very unresponsive that's how they knew! i had tachycardia, high temp and was in and out of consciousness, I was like that for about 2 weeks and had an antibiotic drip hooked up day and night for about 3 weeks. The antibiotic administration was relentless they would do it all the through the night. I don't remember much but like I said I had NO antibiotics after, your son already has started them so as long as his wound heals well also there should be no problem smile I think it's very good that they are reducing antibiotics he must be responding well xx

      Sending you prayers and hugs.

      Faye xx

    • susan556
      susan556 faye.l.moore

      Posted

      Hi Faye, thought id let you know my sons update, its not  good, his cut isnt healing, now they are having to keep packing his open wound as oozing poisons, Now he has to get this changed every day, they waat him to go back up to the hospital or drs every day now, he has no car and  cant walk properly either. Partner has had to hire out a wheel chair so she can wheel him to the drs very day i presume, I dont know, His dad my hubby can help out but not every single day.sad

       

  • Yvonne72736
    Yvonne72736 susan556

    Posted

    Hi Susan, glad to hear your son was a little better than the first time you heard. Poor lad he has been through a lot, I do hope he continues to go in the right direction, he must has been suffering for a long time. I too thought it was just IBS, so ignored mine, although to exonerate the GP's a little apparently appendix can be tricky to diagnose. I'm 66 so that was another factor, (not as likely to be that the older we are). Do let us know how your lovely boy gets on will you?

    Kind regards, and look after yourself too!

    Yvonne

  • Dee06
    Dee06 susan556

    Posted

    Hi Sue, I am 48 years of age and currently recovering from Acute Peritonitis after a ruptured appendix.

    I went to my GP and was given antibiotics for a water infection. After experiencing abdominal pain for 6 days, I had a friend take me to A&E and they performed an emergency operation that day (keyhole surgery not possible either.)

    I also had a ruptured ovarian cyst so fallopian tube and ovary have been taken away and so has a section of my colon.

    A benign tumour was also found in the area of my appendix. I was in hospital for 7 days.

    Although still under the care of the hospital due to the tumour, I hope to be returning to work within the next couple of weeks.

    I wish your son a speedy recovery and I am sure he will be up and about before you know it.

    I hope this goes some way to alleviating your worry.

    The very best of wishes to you and your son.

    Dee

    xxx

    • susan556
      susan556 Dee06

      Posted

      Hi Dee thanks for your reply, sounds like you also been through a rough time of it as well, thank goodness the tumour was benign as well.

      Was it the appendix that caused the ruptured ovairian cys or were these two different accounts? I ask this as they said my sons insides were a total mess where the appendix had been leaking?

      First they said it had ruptured then next morning said it happened, now they are saying it has.

      Did you get cut up from your navel down wards too?  It seems a high place to get to the appendix to me. Om sure they arnt giving us all the facts hear. 

      Anyways all being well he may be allowed home this afternoon, so thanks again for everyone who had answered my post and wished my son well.

      Sue xxx

    • susan556
      susan556 Dee06

      Posted

      Dee just read your post again, so it wasnt that long ago you had all this happen then.

      Wishing you to a speedy recovery

      Sue xx

    • Dee06
      Dee06 susan556

      Posted

      Hi Sue, thank you for the get well wishes, its very much appreciated.

      I'm not sure if the cyst ruptured first or the appendix.....or maybe both at the same time.

      I have a scar that is about an inch above my belly button and it goes all the way down.

      I hope your son is now out of hospital. It takes time but as each day passes, its a day closer to recovery. I hope you too are feeling better....it's such a worry. I know I would be the same if it was one of my children. I am a single parent so my mum has been looking after me since I came out of hospital, she was beside herself with worry.

      I wish you and your son all the very best.

      Take care.

      Dee

      xxx

    • susan556
      susan556 Dee06

      Posted

      Hi Dee he is home now but just had a message from him to say he was ok till he had a bowel movement  now he has stomach pain again.. He thinks the antibiotics are making him feel awful too. but as i point out its only been a week since surgery and look how long a visible bruise takes to go on us.

      LIke you he had the cut just above his belly button downwards and now has staples there,  He is worried they took him of the iv drip and drainage too soon, i just dont know.

      I can well understand how you mum must have felt too.  JUst hope thers no after wards comlications now

      Sue xx

    • lisa91844
      lisa91844 susan556

      Posted

      Hi. After I had my appendix out I had long scar to the right which they decided to take the staples out and leave it as an open wound. Looked like I had been attacked by a shark. I remember was a week before had bowel movement and was so painful was the same for few weeks after I did have laxatives to help and for a few weeks after some herbal stuff to help. The antibiotic and Ibufen don't help with bowel movement they bung you up. I spent more time crying about going to the toilet than anything else lol. It does get better xxx
    • susan556
      susan556 lisa91844

      Posted

      Thanks Lisa for reply, no wonder our son is feeling so awfull 

       How long ago did you have your op? not only is he dealing with his appendix being taken out but also the gangrene they found inside him too which developed from the leaking appendix. probably for months. xxx

    • lisa91844
      lisa91844 susan556

      Posted

      It was a year ago. Mine was also gangerous my bowels had wrapped themselves round my appendix and had stuck to my abdominal wall

      Took over 4 hours of surgery. My wound was leaking "stuff" out for 5 months. I was in hospital for a month had a bag and a vacun draining the stuff out. When finally discharge I was seeing a nurse every 2/3 days to have my dressing changed. I am perfectly fine now and not had any other issues but was a very long process x

    • lisa91844
      lisa91844

      Posted

      Frustrating thing was because I wasn't screaming loud enough in hospital they delayed surgery as they thought I wasn't bad. The doctor later said I had a high pain threshold cos I should of been screaming the place down and crawling the floor. Lol x
    • susan556
      susan556 lisa91844

      Posted

      OMG Lisa sounds just like what our son has had then, this would explain why he was probably in surgery for so long then.  He is luckier than you by the sounds of it. Thing is they only left his dranage bag in for a few days and on IV  drip for antibiotics. i wonder then if his my bowels had wrapped themselves round his  appendix and had stuck to his abdominal wall? Also our son was complaining because they wernt changing his dressing.x 

       

    • lisa91844
      lisa91844 susan556

      Posted

      Scary thing was they said to my husband I would be back 40 mins from surgery. Over 4 hours later I returned they told him nothing just kept moving him to different rooms. He though I had died. Lol we can laugh now.

      My wound was leaking continually none of the dressing the nurse did worked that well. The doctor said they had vacuumed all the poison out when they operated but my body continued making more stuff although wasn't poisonous. . No one really explained it properly. The took the staples out as they wanted my wound to heal from the bottom to stop.

      Open surgery is like having a ceasarian no drivjng , lifting exercise couldn't have a bath for months. Have they said to you when he would be out. They said to me in a few days that lasted a month. Xx

    • susan556
      susan556 lisa91844

      Posted

      Lisa they let him go home on Monday evening only 6 days after surgery, like you we were rininging and they kept saying he still wasnt back from surgery like 4hrs. later, and yes we thought something terrible had happened to him, his partner in tears, then they said when we rang back again later that he was in recovery, then no he isnt his still in the assesement ward!  In the end every department said they had no one by his name with them so now we are really worried thinking did he panic and do a runner but of course he couldnt of hardly of  done a runner could he lol.  Turns out he was back in the ward but no one seemed to know this, honestly i ask you! 

      I dont think they explained enough and dont think he is fully aware now of just how open surgery is like having a ceasarian. I dont think they have a shower either! xx

    • Dee06
      Dee06 susan556

      Posted

      Hi Sue, I am so glad your son is home now. It's not uncommon to have stomach cramps due to wind pain, (assuming that is what it is) your stomach is filled with air during an operation. I had quite severe pains for about 3 weeks after. Diarrhea can be quite common also but not in everybody.

      My drain was taken out about 4 days after the operation and I stopped receiving antibiotics. My dressing was changed only the once in hospital but my wound was very clean so didn't need changing anymore than that.

      My staples were taken out by the district nurse about 14 days after the operation.

      I went back to hospital for a blood test and a chest scan (I think this is standard procedure) its to make sure the poison/mass hasnt spread.

      I had a colonscopy about 2 weeks ago because they have removed part of my colon which was damaged also.

      It's been 10 weeks since the op and I am feeling so much better. There is still quite a lot of tenderness both left and right sides of my stomach. I'm not sure if this will improve in time or its just something that I've got to live with.

      I sympathise a great deal for your son but he will improve in time.

      Give him my best wishes.

      I'm glad I found this forum....it's helped me a lot too.

      Take care

      Dee

      xxx

    • susan556
      susan556 Dee06

      Posted

       Hi Dee and all,  im back,Our sons wound isnt healing properly, i think they shouldnt have used staples either, now its oozing still and they are having to pack it up he said? having to heal as an open wound now, said he has to get back up to the hospital every flipping day now to have it changed, he doenst have a car and he cant walk far either, surly the nurse you call on him. His still having to have blood tests because of white cells and inflamation  so not out the woods yet. he said the staples wernt holding it together properly. 

      Sue xx

    • lisa91844
      lisa91844 susan556

      Posted

      Hi. Sounds very similar to me it takes time but will sort itself out. I had a district nurse come and pack my dressing at the weekends but had to go back to the doctors in the week even tho couldn't drive. They don t help you that's for sure. I was doing this for 4 months after being out of hospital. I got quite good at chia gong my own dressing as it often didn't last in between visits to the nurse. Xx
    • susan556
      susan556 lisa91844

      Posted

      LIsa can he get more dressings and do it himself do you think, he said they were pushing swabs into him this afternoon.im not sure if they still need to do this everyday as well. I say seeing it was all down to his drs, neglegence they should send in a nurse to see to him xx

       

    • lisa91844
      lisa91844 susan556

      Posted

      Might of replied twice but it went funny lol. What they actually put inside your wound is seaweed which looks like cotton strips it soaks up the stuff and helps the wound heal from bottom to top. My hole was about 15 cm so had to be pushed in quite far. I never did this just changed the dressing on top where it had leaked through. The nurses sorted out a perscription for dressings and everything I needed I had to take this with me to doctors when I went for my dressing change x
    • Dee06
      Dee06 susan556

      Posted

      Hi Sue, I'm so sorry to hear that your son's wound isn't healing properly, it must be terribly sore for him.

      I don't see why the nurse can't pop in everyday! Has he asked if he can have home visits? Maybe if he explains that he has no transport and obviously he can't drive himself at the moment. I don't think its fair that he should be travelling backwards and forwards everyday....it's ridiculous!

      I had a nurse visit for about four days to administer Clexane injections but my mum was shown how to do it so the nurse no longer had to visit. All the cut-backs I suppose!

      I wish your son all the best.

      Dee

      xxx

    • faye.l.moore
      faye.l.moore susan556

      Posted

      Hi Sue

      I'm sorry to hear your sons wound is not healing as well. Does he have a VAC pump in? I had to have a vac pump in for 3 months in my wound and I had to go and have it changed every other day at hospital. The first 7 weeks was ok because I was in hospital the whole time so it didn't matter but when I was discharged I had to return like that every other day for a month and then when they took it out surgically (the last time) then I was able to my GP for another month to have it packed. The depth was only about 2cm by that point. I feel your frustration but maybe they want to keep tabs on it too??

      Faye xx

    • susan556
      susan556 lisa91844

      Posted

      Hi again Lisa well it took our son 30 mins to walk to the doctors which usually takes about 7 mins. He arrived 8 mins late so they made him wait around for 20 mins. Ive been searching on google and im reading he should have a nurse in to change his dressings, he cant keep doing this walk every day. should the hospital have requested this, or does our son have to ask for this? Or is it the case there is no such thing as a distric nurse calling anymore because of cuts?

      Sue xx

    • susan556
      susan556 faye.l.moore

      Posted

      Hi Faye

      No he doenst have a vac pump in as far as im aware.It seems the staples didn't do the job and now he has a gaping wound, he litterally had to get himself to the doctors today to have his dressing changed, it took him half hr. to get there as he found it hard to walk, normaly takes him 7 mins. Surley a district nurse should of been calling on him to do this?  He simply cant be doing this every single day. my hubby is able to take him tomorrow and what about the weekend when when there is no surgery?

      Sue xx

    • faye.l.moore
      faye.l.moore susan556

      Posted

      Hi Sue

      I really feel your frustration. When I was having it done in hospital even when I had to go back when I was discharged, if it was the weekend and it did fall on a Sunday a few times the nurses at hospital were very good and would come in on there days off and evenings just to change my VAC pump at the hospital. I was very lucky in that respect. When it was much shallower and I was going to my GP's to have it packed if it fell on a Sunday they would just see me on the Monday instead. So would just wait an extra day. It is difficult and i was the same position, was unable to drive until it was closed and walking was a real struggle I had to get someone to take me every time and I felt such a burden but everyone made time for me and to support me. I think maybe speak to your GP's office and see if there is a service available to you to discuss options for the level of care that your son requires?? Hospital gave me no end of contact numbers for all sorts of people so I had lots of support back in my community. I spoke to the district nurses a couple of times and they were always lovely, so supportive and always went out of there way for me, especially with pain relief of it was a weekend and I was running low. Ask hospital for phone numbers too of required? xxx

    • faye.l.moore
      faye.l.moore

      Posted

      Hi Sue

      Just quickly you will know if your son has a vac pump they are very different from drains and packing. They have small machines/pumps attached to tubing in wound, continuously pumping out infection.

      I really hope you find the treatment he needs to make his healing process a little easier

      Faye xx

    • susan556
      susan556 faye.l.moore

      Posted

      Hi Faye

      well no he didnt have the vac pump in. Today my hubby went with Steve and told them its not acceptable that he should be having to struggle and walk for half hr. every day there and back, a total of 1hrs walking in the state he is. He said the hopsital never obviously arranged any after care so it needs to be sorted from hear. In the end she agreed so lets hope he gets a visit tomorrow. Glad you had the support bacause he hasnt had any. He even found it diffucult to get into our car.

      Sue xx

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