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00:00In April 1961, the 6th Soviet Antarctic Expedition took a harrowing turn.
00:07Dr. Leonid Rogozov, the team's only physician,
00:11began feeling weak and feverish,
00:14with an excruciating pain in his right side.
00:18After a few days, it became clear that he had appendicitis,
00:23an infection that can cause the appendix to break.
00:27An infection that can cause the appendix to burst.
00:31And Rogozov knew that if his appendix did rupture,
00:35it would likely kill him.
00:37Outside, a blizzard raged,
00:39making it dangerous for him to leave the station
00:42or to have anyone else travel in.
00:45So Rogozov faced a gut-wrenching choice.
00:49Wait for help that may never come,
00:52or cut open his own abdomen and remove the appendix himself.
00:57While Rogozov's predicament may have been extreme,
01:01appendicitis is not uncommon.
01:04It affects roughly 1 in 12 people.
01:07So, what causes appendicitis?
01:10And why is this organ so prone to bursting?
01:15The appendix is a small, worm-shaped pouch
01:18attached to the large intestine that houses a diversity of gut microbes.
01:24Scientists long speculated that it was a useless artifact of evolution.
01:29Recent evidence shows that this organ independently evolved
01:33in many different mammals.
01:35This suggests that it probably has some function,
01:39though it's likely subtle.
01:41One possibility is that the appendix serves as a reservoir
01:45for healthy gut bacteria.
01:47Or it may play a role in mounting immune responses.
01:52What we do know is this puzzling organ can cause serious complications.
01:58Most cases of appendicitis start with some sort of obstruction.
02:03For example, a small, dried piece of stool, called an appendicolith,
02:08can lodge itself in the organ's entrance.
02:11Other times, pathogens like viruses or parasites
02:15activate the immune system, causing inflammation.
02:19This immune response may even be triggered
02:22by one of hundreds of species of bacteria that normally reside in your gut.
02:27As a result, nearby lymph nodes swell,
02:31effectively closing off the appendix's opening.
02:34Because the appendix is a closed loop,
02:37when it's sealed, pressure builds quickly.
02:40This creates the perfect environment for bacteria to colonize and overgrow.
02:46As the inflamed appendix bloats, discomfort sets in,
02:50and this pain is different from your everyday stomachache.
02:54It typically starts near the belly button,
02:56and then migrates to the lower right abdomen and intensifies.
03:02If left untreated, the appendix can continue to stretch,
03:06hindering blood flow and weakening the organ walls.
03:09Eventually, this can cause the appendix to rupture,
03:12allowing the infection to spread within the abdomen,
03:15where it can pose fatal consequences.
03:18Thankfully, not all cases of appendicitis will lead to a rupture,
03:23but it's impossible to know exactly when or if
03:27the appendix will burst from symptoms alone.
03:30So it's recommended that all people with severe abdominal pain
03:35seek immediate medical attention.
03:37Since doctors first identified appendicitis in the late 1800s,
03:42an appendectomy, or the surgical removal of the appendix,
03:46has been the standard treatment.
03:49It's normally performed quickly, within 24 hours of diagnosis.
03:54Doctors remove the inflamed organ, which can double in size,
03:58either through one large incision or through several smaller incisions,
04:03using a camera and small instruments.
04:05Recovery is typically quick,
04:07and most patients are discharged within a day or two.
04:11Though, if the appendix has burst,
04:13surgery can be more extensive, as any bacteria and pus
04:18need to be thoroughly cleaned from the abdominal cavity.
04:22In the long term, living without an appendix
04:25is unlikely to lead to any health issues.
04:28Today, thanks to medical advances, many patients avoid surgery altogether.
04:34Doctors have learned that appendicitis can often be treated
04:37with a simple course of antibiotics,
04:40started in the emergency room and continued at home.
04:44No matter the chosen course of treatment,
04:46it's likely to be less distressing than Rogozov's,
04:50who, after giving himself local anesthesia,
04:53removed his own appendix, stitched himself up,
04:57and resumed his regular duties just two weeks later.
05:01Nevertheless, thanks to his story, doctors on remote stations in Antarctica
05:06now know to bring plenty of antibiotics to treat appendicitis, just in case.
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