Appendicolith. Significance in acute appendicitis and demonstration by computed tomography.

A case of periappendical abscess is presented in which the diagnosis was made by demonstration of an appendicolith in a large abscess cavity by computed tomography (CT) in conjunction with the clinical signs and symptoms. However, the appendicolith was not detected by plain film radiography. We stress that CT is more sensitive in detection of such small calcified bodies than plain film radiography and that the true incidence of appendicolith in acute appendicitis could be higher than that reported previously.