Appendicitis is when your appendix gets inflamed or infected.

It can rupture, or tear, and cause serious problems if it's not removed.

An appendectomy is surgery to remove your appendix.

Your doctor will want to take out your appendix before it ruptures, if possible.

If the appendix has ruptured, it may be removed right away, and the area will be cleaned out during the surgery.

In some cases, the doctor gives medicine to help treat the infection before removing the ruptured appendix.

You may be in the hospital for a short time before your surgery.

Your doctor will determine the best time for the surgery.

Your care team will watch you closely and make sure you're okay.

And you'll get medicines to help with pain.

Now, here's how the surgery is done.

First, you'll get medicine to make you sleep.

An appendectomy is usually done as "laparoscopic" surgery.

This means the doctor makes a few small cuts called incisions in your belly and puts a scope and other surgical tools through the cuts to take out your appendix.

Then the doctor closes the cuts with stitches or staples or small pieces of special tape.

The cuts will heal quickly and leave scars that usually fade over time.

In some cases, an appendectomy is done through one larger cut in the belly.

That's called open surgery, and the recovery will take longer.

Recovering from an appendectomy can take up to a few weeks or sometimes longer.

It depends on the type of surgery you had and whether the appendix ruptured.

After the surgery, your body will work normally, without an appendix.

Your doctor will give you instructions for how to care for yourself at home so you can heal and get better as soon as possible.