Laparoscopic versus open appendectomy: A retrospective cohort study on the management of acute appendicitis (simple and complicated) in children under 13 years of age.

Introduction: Acute appendicitis is the most common surgical emergency with a lifetime incidence of 7%-8%. There are two operative modalities that are currently used for the management of this condition in the paediatric population. The objective of this cohort study was to review the outcome of the management of paediatric surgical patients presenting with acute appendicitis after either an open appendectomy (OA) or laparoscopic appendectomy (LA) was performed.