Crohn's disease limited to the appendix

Abstract

Background: Crohn's disease confined to the vermiform appendix is rare. In our study, the incidence was 0.2% of all patients diagnosed with Crohn's disease at La Paz University Hospital, Madrid, Spain, in 20 years.

Methods: Here we review the clinical records of 10 patients with isolated appendiceal Crohn's disease.

Results: Preoperative diagnosis was acute appendicitis in all 10 cases, and all patients underwent appendectomy. Postoperative complications were limited to an enterocutaneous fistula in 1 patient. There was no evidence of recurrence during a mean follow-up period of 14.5 years (range 2 to 25 year).

Conclusions: We conclude that Crohn's disease when confined to the appendix is less aggressive than in other sections of the intestine, with a low recurrence rate and incidence of postoperative fistula.