Medicine: Penicillin allergy; Appendicitis

It is important that if you had been labelled as “Allergic to penicillin” in the past but, today, you no longer have penicillin allergy that this is recognised. This is called penicillin allergy de-labelling. Penicillin skin testing is the traditional method for penicillin allergy de-labelling. However, a new and simpler method, namely, the direct oral challenge with amoxicillin (amoxicillin, by the way, is a widely used member of the penicillin family) could be another method for penicillin allergy de-labelling. However, this new and simpler method applies only to patients with a low risk to react with an allergy to penicillin, which, on the other hand, can be estimated easily by doctors.
Everybody knows what appendicitis is. Everybody knows that the treatment for appendicitis is a small surgical operation, namely, appendectomy. However, a growing body of medical evidence shows that about 70% of patients with appendicitis can be treated successfully with antibiotics alone. This is the percentage of patients with uncomplicated appendicitis. One exception: Antibiotic treatment is less effective in patients with appendicolith (an appendicolith is a conglomeration of firm faeces with mineral deposits). It seems unlikely that a non-surgical approach to appendicitis will become popular, but some patients might prefer it, and patients can make now informed decisions based on these published clinical studies.