Background: Acute appendicitis is one of the most common causes of acute abdominal pain. Differences in the management of this large group of patients has important consequences for the patients and the healthcare system. Controversies regarding the understanding of the natural course of the disease, the utility of new diagnostic methods, and alternative treatments have lead to large variations in practice patterns between centres. These national guidelines present evidence-based recommendations aiming at a uniform, safe and cost-efficient management of this large group of patients.

Method: A working group of six experts with broad clinical and research experience was formed. Additional expertise from outside was consulted during the process. A national survey revealed significant variations in the management of patients with suspicion of appendicitis. The evidence provided in published guidelines and reviews were extracted and systematically graded, according to the GRADE methodology. This was supplemented by additional more recent and more directed search of the literature. Patients treated for appendicitis were involved through interviews. The guidelines were reviewed by external experts before the final version was determined.

Results: The guidelines cover an extensive number of issues: pathology, epidemiology, aetiology, natural history, clinical and laboratory diagnosis, diagnostic scoring systems, diagnostic imaging, treatment, nursing care, follow-up, quality registers and quality indicators, among others. Special considerations related to children and pregnant women are covered.

Conclusion: These national guidelines present an extensive and thorough review of the current knowledge base related to appendicitis, and provide up-to-date evidence-based recommendations for the management of this large group of patients.

背景： 急性阑尾炎是导致急性腹痛的最常见原因之一。对这一大类病人的不同治疗方法对病人和医疗系统都有重要影响。对该疾病自然病程的理解、新诊断方法的实用性以及替代治疗方法等方面的争议导致各中心的实践模式大相径庭。这些国家指南提出了以证据为基础的建议，旨在对这一庞大的患者群体进行统一、安全和具有成本效益的管理。

方法： 成立了一个由六位具有丰富临床和研究经验的专家组成的工作组。在此过程中，还咨询了其他外部专家的意见。一项全国性调查显示，在处理疑似阑尾炎患者方面存在很大差异。根据 GRADE 方法，对已发表的指南和综述中提供的证据进行了提取和系统分级。此外，还进行了更多最新和更有针对性的文献检索。阑尾炎患者通过访谈参与其中。在确定最终版本之前，外部专家对指南进行了审查。

结果： 指南涵盖了大量问题：病理学、流行病学、病因学、自然史、临床和实验室诊断、诊断评分系统、诊断成像、治疗、护理、随访、质量登记和质量指标等。还包括与儿童和孕妇有关的特殊考虑因素。

结论 这些国家指南对当前与阑尾炎相关的知识基础进行了广泛而深入的回顾，并为这一大类病人的治疗提供了最新的循证建议。