Insurance and the Risk of Ruptured Appendix

The article by Braveman et al. (Aug. 18 issue)¹ does not mention the number of emergency room visits or any admissions in the weeks before the admission for appendicitis. This is important information, because patients with no insurance and those covered by Medicaid have a high number of emergency room visits, as the authors note, and a high number of hospital admissions during which no diagnosis is made. The patients with early signs and symptoms of appendicitis could have had one or more emergency room visits or hospital admissions for undiagnosed appendicitis, only to present later with.  . .