Diagnosis of acute appendicitis in children: spectrum of sonographic findings.

The sonographic appearance of the appendix and the periappendiceal region may vary greatly in children with acute appendicitis, depending on the extent and degree of inflammation and the presence or absence of perforation. Recognition of the typical and atypical sonographic features of appendicitis can be important in its diagnosis. In this report, we illustrate the spectrum of sonographic findings in 250 children examined with the graded-compression technique because of suspected appendicitis. Sixty-three (25%) of these children were subsequently shown to have appendicitis.