Sensitivity and specificity of the diagnostic scales in acute appendicitis. Prospective study

Abstract

Acute Appendicitis manifests when there is inflammation of the cecal appendix, representing one of the most notable causes of acute abdomen with surgical prognosis in the world. There are scoring systems that have been generated for verification, using non-invasive techniques that are easy to apply and reproduce; highlighting among them the scales of ALVARADO, RIPASA, AIR, among others. Objective: To evaluate the use of the AIR vs. RIPASA scales for the diagnosis of Acute Appendicitis at the National General Hospital “Dr. Ángel Larralde”, period January 2020 – December 2022. Materials: The sample was intentional and not probabilistic, meeting the inclusion criteria. For data collection, direct observation was used as a technique and the AIR and RIPASA scales as an instrument. Results: Sample made up of 192 patients, with no gender predisposition. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and AIR diagnostic accuracy: 70%; 58.33%; 73.68%; 53.84%; 65.62%; RIPASE: 88.88%; 42.85%; 66.66%; 75%; 68.75%. Conclusions: The diagnostic accuracy for the RIPASA scale was slightly higher than for AIR (68.75% vs. 65.62%), allowing us to affirm that, in the study group, the application of the RIPASA scale was more convenient in healthy patients for the correct diagnosis of Acute Appendicitis.