Can a barium swallow an be used to diagnose appendicitis?
Answer:
No, a Barium swallow will not show appendicitis ( I in recent times rang my husband to trade name sure, he is a Radiographer, and he laughed at me). Most conspicuously you should get a second inference. An ultrasound is the best modality for diagnosing appendicitis, as well as blood test and a physical examination (warning, they may stick their finger up your bum (can I utter bum?).
Hope you feel better soon.
Get another belief. My daughter-in-law had a burst appendix and the hospital told her it be an STD (she was a virgin at the time!). She be operated on in recent times in the scratch of time.
An esophagram evaluates the part of the digestive system from the mouth down to where on earth the esophagus meets the stomach. It will not show the appendix which is located in close proximity the junction of the small intestines and considerable intestines.
A CT scan of the abdomen will show the nouns of the appendix. We are also starting to use ultrasound to evaluate the appendix.
"Ultrasonography is safe and to hand, with exactitude rates between 71 and 97 percent, although it is highly hand dependent and difficult in patients beside a large body habitus. While within is controversy regarding the use of contrast medium and which CT technique is best, the accuracy rate of CT scan is between 93 and 98 percent. Disadvantages of CT include radiation exposure, cost, and possible complications from contrast media."
http://www.aafp.org/afp/20050101/71.html...
So, as you can see, CT scan is pretty accurate. If you are still in agony, talk next to your doctor about your concerns. Best wishes..
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