What’s an appendix good for?
Posted on August 16, 2020
The human body has many vestigial remnants of our millions of years of mammalian evolution, the appendix is one such remnant. Although not functional in homo sapiens it does provide significant gastrointestinal functions in lower order mammals. However, reconstructive surgery utilizes the appendix as a conduit to optimize urinary drainage in children with various congenital urologic anomalies. The Mitrofanoff procedure is one such procedure whereby the appendix is isolated and anastomosed to the bladder and umbilicus enabling efficient drainage of the urinary tract. This greatly improves the quality of life in children with complex urologic anomalies.
1 thought on “What’s an appendix good for?”
Ben
–Very fascinating!