Patient Education:

Laparoscopic Appendectomy,
Pediatric, Care After
Elsevier Patient Education © 2024 Elsevier Inc.

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 Laparoscopic Appendectomy, Paediatric,
Aftercare
Laparoscopic Appendectomy, Pediatric, Care After
The following information offers guidance on how to care for your child after a laparoscopic
appendectomy. Your child's healthcare provider may also give you more specific instructions. If you
have problems or questions, contact your child's healthcare provider.

What can I expect after the procedure?

After the procedure, it is common for children to have:

• Mild incision pain.

• Tiredness (fatigue).
• Constipation. This may be caused by taking painkillers and being less active during recovery.
• Gas pain that can radiate to their shoulders.

Follow these instructions at home:

Medicines

• Give over-the-counter and prescription medicines only as instructed by your child's healthcare
provider.
◦ Do not stop giving the antibiotics even if your child starts to feel better.
• Your child's condition or medicines may cause constipation. To prevent or treat constipation, you
may need to:
◦ Give enough fluid to keep his or her urine pale yellow.
◦ Give over-the-counter or prescription medicines.
◦ Offer foods that are high in fibre, such as beans, wholegrain, and fresh fruits and vegetables.
◦ Limit foods that are high in fat and processed sugars, such as fried or sweet foods.

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Incision care

• Follow instructions from your child's healthcare provider about how

to take care of your child's incisions. Make sure you:
◦ Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds
before and after you change your child's bandage (dressing). If
soap and water are not available, use hand sanitiser.
◦ Change your child's dressing as instructed by his or her
healthcare provider.
◦ Leave stitches (sutures), staples, skin glue, or adhesive strips
in place. These skin closures may need to stay in place for 2
weeks or longer. If adhesive strip edges start to loosen and curl up, you may trim the loose
edges. Do not remove adhesive strips completely unless the healthcare provider tells you to
do that.
• Check your child's incision areas every day for signs of infection. Check for:
◦ Redness, swelling, or pain.
◦ Fluid or blood.
◦ Warmth.
◦ Pus or a bad smell.

Bathing

• Do not let your child take baths, swim, or use a hot tub until his or her
healthcare provider approves. Ask your healthcare provider if your child
may take showers. Your child may only be allowed to take sponge baths.
• Keep your child's incisions clean and dry. Clean them as often as instructed
by your child's healthcare provider. To do this:
◦ Gently wash the incisions with soap and water.
◦ Rinse the incisions with water to remove all soap.
◦ Pat the incisions dry with a clean towel. Do not rub the incisions.

Activity

• Have your child rest at home. Ask your child's healthcare provider when he or she can return to
school.
• Do not let your child lift anything that is heavier than 10 lb (4.5 kg), or the limit that you are told,
until the healthcare provider says that it is safe to do so.
• Do not let your child play contact sports until the healthcare provider says that it is okay to do so.
• Have your child return to normal activities as instructed by the healthcare provider. Ask the
healthcare provider what activities are safe for your child.

General instructions

• Follow any diet instructions given to you by your child's healthcare provider.
• Have your child take deep breaths. This helps to prevent an infection of the lungs (pneumonia).

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 • If your child was sent home with a drain, follow instructions from your child's healthcare provider
about how to care for it.
• Keep all follow-up appointments. This is important.

Contact a healthcare provider if:

• Your child has chills or a fever.

• Your child has pain that is not controlled with painkillers.
• Your child is not eating or drinking, is feeling nauseous, or is vomiting.
• Your child has diarrhoea or constipation.

Get help right away if:

• Your child has drainage, redness, swelling, or pain at the incision site.
• Your child has pain that is getting worse.
• Your child cannot stop vomiting.
• Your child has difficulty breathing.
• Your child develops swelling or pain in his or her legs.

These symptoms may be an emergency. Do not wait to see if the symptoms will go away. Get help
right away. Call your local emergency services.

Summary

• After a laparoscopic appendectomy, it is common for children to have mild pain and fatigue.
• Follow instructions from your child's healthcare provider about caring for your child after the
procedure.
• Have your child rest after the procedure. Have your child return to normal activities only when
the healthcare provider says it is safe to do so.
• Contact a healthcare provider if your child has a fever, constipation, vomiting, diarrhoea, or pain
that is not controlled by medicine.
• Get help right away if your child has signs of infection at the incision sites, pain that is getting
worse, vomiting that does not stop, difficulty breathing, or swelling or pain in the legs.

This information is not intended to replace advice given to you by your health care provider. Make sure
you discuss any questions you have with your health care provider.

Document Revised: 11/01/2022 Document Reviewed: 11/01/2022

Elsevier Patient Education © 2024 Elsevier Inc.

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