Does RIPASA score predict Appendicitis as well as Alvarado score?

Abstract

Objective: To compare RIPASA scoring system with Alvarado scoring system for diagnosing Appendicitis in terms of Diagnostic Accuracy. Study Design: Prospective Observational Study. Place and Duration: Department of Surgery, HBS General Hospital, 15th January 2019- 30th March 2020. Methodology: Patients with appendicitis were enrolled after informed consent. Pregnant females, patients younger than 12 years, duration of pain more than 7 days and patients with established causes of pain other than appendicitis were excluded. RIPASA and Alvarado score were calculated but treating Surgeon was blinded to the scores. Resected specimens were sent for histopathology which was gold standard. Sensitivity, Specificity, Negative and Positive Predictive values and Diagnostic Accuracy were calculated using 2×2 table. Results: A total of 184 patients were included in the study. Mean age was 23.6±8.2 years. A total of 23.9% patients had normal Appendices on Histopathology while 76.1% patients were found to have acutely inflamed appendices. RIPASA score had a sensitivity of 96.42% as compared to 79.28% of Alvarado score. The Diagnostic accuracy of Alvarado Score was found to be 69.56% as while the diagnostic accuracy of RIPASA score was found to be 89.67%. Conclusion: RIPASA Score is superior to Alvarado score in terms of diagnostic accuracy in our population. Keywords: RIPASA, Alvarado, Appendicitis, Scoring system How to Cite This: