FYI - Ruptured Appendix

[Asha]

At 8 years old, I nearly died from ruptured appendix. After the surgery, I developed a severe infection. At the time, the dr's told my mother there would be no lasting effects.

Fast forward to now after ttc for almost 2 years, my regular ob/gyn's couldn't figure out what was wrong with me. I was needlessly put on clomid bc that's just what was automatically done with unexplained infertility. As a result of that, I suffered through two months of very painful cysts. Finally, we went to an RE, and he noticed something that I have put on ALL my medical histories - ruptured appendix. Ruptured appendix can cause pelvic adhesions which cause infertility. This is not some obscure knowledge bc it is information readily available on the internet by typing the key words fertility and ruptured appendix.

I am very mad that I was not educated by my previous gyn's that I had a trauma that could cause infertility. What is the point of me writing a medical history, if they aren't going to use it to inform me? I would have liked to have known this information at my first gyn appt when I was 18 years old.

I am not posting this to get any sympathy but posting this to let other women know that ruptured appendix can cause infertility. I am not saying it always does cause it, but you should be aware that it can cause it. If I had known about this earlier, I would have demanded to have gotten a laparoscopy even before ttc to figure out what, if anything, was wrong with me.

[lml41981]

That is good information to know. I'm sorry that happened to you. Is there anything that can be done to fix it? :(

[Asha]

lml - there's not much that can be done to fix the adhesions, but fertility treatments may help with ttc.

***
also, i wanted to post this information for parents too. if your child has severe stomach pains and vomiting, this should not be taken lightly. my pedi initially told my mom not to bring me in to see him bc he thought it was "just the flu." if my mom had brought me in when i first started showing sign of illness, my appendix may not have ruptured, and i might be fine now. i am not blaming my mother at all bc she was just taking the advice of the pedi.

[Sandie78]

Gosh, that's really annoying. Someone should have said something sooner. I have not had a ruptured appendix, but thanks for the info.

[kazata]

Asha Sorry to hear about the ruptured appendix and possible adhesions. I don't know anything specifically about adhesions caused by a ruptured appendix, but generally pelvic adhesions (which might be caused by surgeries for example) might be treatable through a lap. Depending on the severity, an RE can basically laser (cut?) them and free up the organs. My RE had suspected pelvic adhesions before my lap and this was the plan (though I didn't end up having adhesions).

[Asha]

well, its a little more than annoying. :(

kazata - my re doesn't reccomend that bc he thinks it could just cause more scarring, and he said statistically it won't increase my chances of successfully conceiving. from what i have read with other ladies' experiences on another board, ruptured appendix causes quite extensive adhesions that really can't be repaired. though, i might consider having this done after i have successfully given birth to children bc adhesions can cause problems with digestion, too, and i have a very sensitive stomach and suspect this is caused by the adhesions as well. i want to investigate if surgery will help improve my digestive issues.

[Tandis]

Welcome to the club ;)

I had an appendix that almost burst when I was 5. The Ped. filling in for my regular Dr. kept saying that it was only the flu. To this day I can remember the horrible, doubling over pain I was in, and my parents knew that it was something more than that, but the guy refused to do anything. When my reg. Dr. finally came back from vac. he sent me to the ER immediately. When the surgeon removed my appendix, it burst in his hand. Unfortunately, it had also wrapped around my right fallopian tube and ovary, turning both of them gangrene.

When I was 17 a had a huge cyst on my left ovary that had to be removed - along with half my ovary. My OB at the time remarked on all the adhesions I had at that point, and did his best to remove as much as he could.

When DH and I started TTCing a little over two years ago, I knew the adhesions were going to be a problem, but all of my OBs up to that point kept saying "Oh, you won't have any problem getting pregnant." :rolleyes: Yeah, when I finally had a lap done last year by my RE, it revealed extensive adhesions, binding up just about everything. He removed as much as he could, but unfortunately, adhesions come back, even after surgery, in as little as six weeks, and there really isn't anything that can be done about them.

The two leading causes of pelvic adhesions? Appendicitis and ovarian cysts. So like I said, welcome to the club ;) IVF was the only thing that worked for me.

Just out of curiousity, are your adhesions causing you any pain? Before my lap I would get super sharp pains in my lower stomach that would last for a little while - kind of taking my breath away. Sometimes sex would be *very* painful depending upon the position, not to mention the occassional IBS - all because of the adhesions. If nothing else, the lap did help to "free" things up, and I haven't felt the pain since then.

[tigerest]

Sorry to hear about this Asha! Very frustrating indeed. I hope they are able to help you get PG now that you know what may be causing problems.

Good info though! There are many things that can cause adhesions. In my case it was endo, which lead to blocked tubes and my ovaries being stuck to my tubes and bowels.

Also any kind of injury, like a bad fall or car accident can cause adhesions. Certain pelvic infections as well. Not to freak anyone out, but definitely if you ever suspect that something may not be right then keep changing drs until someone listens. My Gyn kept treating me like an impatient idiot when I KNEW something was wrong.

[Asha]

tandis - it's so wonderful to hear that ivf worked for you, and you are expecting twins!!! congrats!! it gives me hope that someone with a similar condition was able to conceive. oh, i have gotten some really bad stomach pains before. sex in some positions is somewhat painful.

tigerest - that sounds like it would have been very painful since it was all stuck together. were you have digestive problems too?

[Tandis]

Tigerest - Thanks, I forgot about endo being another leading cause of adhesions.

Asha - If it's really bothersome, you might want to at least *think* about contacting another RE to do a lap. Like I said, I haven't had the pains I did before, and sex, for the most part, isn't as bad and it's been over a year. Drs. can do micro laps now (though I don't think all REs do them - mine didn't), which is supposed to greatly reduce the adhesions that reform since it's done with lasers and very little of the surrounding tissue is touched.

Honestly, at this point, what have you got to lose? Pelvic adhesions don't affect the inside of your uterus so it doesn't matter if you have the surgery before or after you have kids. Who knows, you might be one of the lucky ones who gets pregnant afterwards without having to resort to IVF! :)

[Asha]

tandis - well, i am meeting with my re in a week, and i will ask him about it again. i will have to go with another facility anyways for the lap bc my re doesn't take my insurance.

[Sandie78]

well, its a little more than annoying. :(




Yes, you're right. Sorry, I wasn't trying to downplay your experience I just didn't pick the right word.

[Asha]

it's ok, sandie.

[tigerest]

Asha - Yes, I have always had digestive problems, so I can't completely blame it on adhesions. But I will tell you one thing...I definitely had lots of constipation problems before, when everything was all tangled. After my laps it would get better for a while. And sex in certain positions was always painful as well...and that has also improved. :) Good luck!

[Asha]

thank you tigerrest.

[ptcrn]

Wow, Asha (and others), thank you for the info.

I too, had a ruptured appendix (at age 17) and I had no idea that it could cause adhesions (and I'm a nurse!) None of my doctors have ever told me this. I wonder if this could be my problem? We've been TTC for 13 months now. I will definitely bring it up to my RE at my first appt in October.

I have had those weird sharp pains too, both at rest and during intercourse. It never seemed to be related to any particular time in my cycle, so I guess I always wrote it off. I'm a little scared now! I'm guessing the RE will probably do a lap as a diagnostic test anyway, so I guess I will just wait and see.

Thank you!

[Asha]

I too, had a ruptured appendix (at age 17) and I had no idea that it could cause adhesions (and I'm a nurse!) None of my doctors have ever told me this. I wonder if this could be my problem? We've been TTC for 13 months now. I will definitely bring it up to my RE at my first appt in October.

I have had those weird sharp pains too, both at rest and during intercourse. It never seemed to be related to any particular time in my cycle, so I guess I always wrote it off. I'm a little scared now! I'm guessing the RE will probably do a lap as a diagnostic test anyway, so I guess I will just wait and see.

ptcrn - i don't know if re's normally do lap's unless there is some reason to believe that there is tubal damage, so definitely bring up the ruptured appendix bc that can cause tubal damage. you and your dh have had all the other diagnositic tests, right? i think it was much more apparant to my re that this was the cause of the problem bc i had all my other tests completed, and they came back normal. did you develop an infection after surgery? my re really emphasized that having the infection after surgery made it even more likely that i had adhesions. good luck, ptcrn.

[Steve's Sweety]

I too had a ruptured appendix at 8 yrs old, and at my first appt with an OB who specialized in the infertility area, she specifically asked about it and mentioned how the scar tissue can sometimes cause problems.

I guess I was lucky to have someone so on top of it, but I am sorry that you are having problems.

[Asha]

steve'ssweety - it's hopeful to see somoene with my same problem with a beautiful child and another one on the way. if you wouldn't mind sharing, did you have to go through art to conceive? if that's too personal, and you'd rather not share, you don't have to answer that question. i understand. also, did you have an infection after surgery? my re specifically mentioned that this increased my chances of infertility on top of already having had ruptured appendix.

[Steve's Sweety]

I really hope you can find something that helps you.

We were lucky enough to be able to conceive on our own, though I did have some progesterone supplementation (unrelated to the surgery).

I did not get an infection that I remember. I remember they had to leave the incision open and put a drainage tube in but I think that was due to the rupturing, it actually ruptured when I was in surgery.

I wish you the best and feel free to PM me if you have any more questions.

[savannahgrl]

Asha- I'm so sorry. That is so frustrating. I also had a ruptured appendix at 8 years old and my doctors never mentioned anything about infertility either. My rupture was pretty bad as the doctors kept telling my mom I had the flu (for 2 weeks). My mom took me to another doctor only to discover that my appendix was ruptured.

We were very fortunate to conceive without any problems, but my obgyn did mention at my last appointment that if I were to need a c/s with this baby that my recovery may be more difficult due to the scar tissue.

I wish you the best of luck and just wanted to say that I'm so sorry that you are having to deal with this. It's sad to think that there are young girls out there having surgery without knowing that it could negatively impact their chances of conceiving one day.

[ptcrn]

ptcrn - i don't know if re's normally do lap's unless there is some reason to believe that there is tubal damage, so definitely bring up the ruptured appendix bc that can cause tubal damage. you and your dh have had all the other diagnositic tests, right? i think it was much more apparant to my re that this was the cause of the problem bc i had all my other tests completed, and they came back normal. did you develop an infection after surgery? my re really emphasized that having the infection after surgery made it even more likely that i had adhesions. good luck, ptcrn.

Oops, I'm just getting back to this thread now. :rolleyes: Thanks for the info and support, Asha. I saw the RE for the first time today and that was one of the first things she brought up, that a ruptured appendix can cause tubal damage and/or adhesions. I did have a really bad infection afterward, was on IV antibiotics for several days if I remember correctly. We actually haven't had any dx testing yet- other than SA, so next on the agenda is an HSG and all the routine CD3 bloodwork. She seems to think that my tubes may be blocked- I'm torn between hoping they are, because it gives us an answer; and hoping they aren't.

[Red'sGirl]

I, too, had a ruptured appendix. Only mine wasn't when I was a child, it was just a few years ago. I got very sick for two weeks. My general doctor dismissed me outright, saying that maybe I just needed some Tums. The next week, I saw my OBGYN but she didn't see anything unusual. But I came back a few days later, really sick. I had lost 8 lbs in a week, and when I described the pain again, it finally clicked for her. She admitted me immediately, but the surgeon on staff didn't believe that it was an appendicitis. I guess I have a high threshhold for pain and he didn't think I could withstand it. Anyhow, two years passed, with me getting sicker until another doctor figured it out and took my ruptured and leaking appendix out.

Four years later and we got pregnant. It wasn't until then that my OBGYN told me that she didn't think it would be possible for me to get pg on my own, but she didn't want to tell me until I had tried. I guess I got really lucky.

I wish you luck!!!