Appendicitis in Childhood, 1941

Black and white film with sound showing Joseph Brennemann, MD giving a lecture about appendicitis in children. He discusses the symptoms and courses of treatment at different stages, the theories of its causes–particularly the connection to upper respiratory infections, the reasons that pediatricians should be interested in the subject, and his expertise on the subject as the head of Children’s Memorial Hospital, Chicago. Throughout the lecture he gives specific examples of cases that he has seen at the hospital. He explains that appendicitis still has a high mortality rate because symptoms such as abdominal pain, vomiting, and fever often do not present as serious. Generally such symptoms are misdiagnosed or treated in other ways, including enemas and cathartics, which are bad for children with appendicitis. Brennemann also stresses that early diagnosis is very important but not always easy, that the most important sign in early appendicitis is one-point tenderness in the abdomen, and that not all cases should be treated with an operation.

By Joseph Brennemann, MD. Presented through the courtesy of Mead Johnson & Company.