Uptime as a measure of recovery in children postappendectomy

Purpose: The aim of this study was to objectively measure recovery time after open and laparoscopic appendectomy using an activity monitor (PAL 1). Methods: The PAL 1 records the amount of time that the subject is upright (uptime). Children wore the PAL 1 for 10 days continuously, beginning within the first 48 hours postoperatively. Results: Uptime data were collected for 5 or more days for 42 children (open, n = 16; laparoscopic, n = 26). All children had low levels of uptime in the initial postoperative period. There was weak evidence of a quicker recovery rate for children in the laparoscopic group (P = .09). The difference in mean uptime between groups was of statistical significance by day 7 postoperatively with children in the laparoscopic group having a higher mean uptime than those in the open group (difference of 0.7 hours; 95% confidence intervals 0.0 to 1.4 hours in a 24-hour period). Conclusions: The results of this study show that recovery postappendectomy can be quantified by the measurement of uptime and that children undergoing a laparoscopic procedure may recover marginally more quickly than those undergoing an open procedure.