Stephen Colbert Cancels Shows to Recover From Ruptured Appendix, What to Know

Late Show host Stephen Colbert announced his show would cancelled for a week as he recovers. Gilbert Carrasquillo/GC Images

• “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” was canceled this week while the host recovers from surgery for a ruptured appendix.
• Ruptured appendix is a complication of appendicitis requiring immediate medical attention.
• Appendicitis is common and may lead to serious complications if left untreated.

“Late Show” host Stephen Colbert canceled his shows this week to recover from surgery following a ruptured appendix.

The comedian shared the news on the social media platform Threads with his followers on Monday.

“Sorry to say that I have to cancel our shows this week. I’m sure you’re thinking, ‘Turkey overdose, Steve? Gravy boat capsize?’ Actually, I’m recovering from surgery for a ruptured appendix. I’m grateful to my doctors for their care and to Evie and the kids for putting up with me. Going forward, all emails to my appendix will be handled by my pancreas,” he wrote.

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“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” was slated to return from Thanksgiving break on Tuesday, featuring guests like Jennifer Garner, Patrick Stewart, Barbra Streisand, and Kelsey Grammer, among others.

This week marks the second time Colbert has had to cancel “Late Night” shows due to illness in recent months. In October, Colbert canceled several shows to recover from COVID-19.

Did Stephen Colbert have appendicitis?

Colbert’s ruptured appendix likely began as appendicitis, an inflammation of the appendix.

Dr. Tracey Childs, board certified in general and colorectal surgery and chief of surgery at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA, explained that Colbert had appendicitis that progressed and then perforated.

“Ruptured doesn’t mean that it exploded,” she told Healthline. “It means that the wall of the appendix, in the process of being infected, became a little gangrenous.”

Childs described the process of appendicitis as a collection of fluid, like an abscess or an inflammatory mass. 

When appendicitis becomes ruptured or perforated, it requires immediate medical attention.

“It doesn’t go from zero to perforated in no time,” Childs said, noting that a ruptured appendix takes some time to develop. 

“[But] if diagnosis is delayed, you can develop gangrenous appendicitis,” she said, which may lead to more serious complications.

Does a ruptured appendix need to be removed?

In the United States, the standard of care for acute appendicitis is surgery to remove the appendix. 

However, some research has shown that antibiotics may be just as effective as surgery in treating appendicitis, but results may vary based on an individual’s health circumstances. In most cases, antibiotics should not be considered an alternative to an appendectomy.

“Most people choose surgery and then go home and live their lives,” Childs said. 

“Sometimes what will happen is if you have a big inflammatory mass, you perforate, and then the body recruits the tissues around it to kind of wall off the perforation,” she explained.

“They will often treat that with antibiotics for 5–7 days, let everything cool down, and then do an interval appendectomy [removal of the appendix],” she added.

How long does it take to recover from a ruptured appendix?

Appendicitis severity falls on a spectrum, ranging from uncomplicated to complicated.

For instance, a patient may have a micro-perforation or a larger perforation with an abscess or inflammatory mass.

According to Childs, during early unruptured or uncomplicated appendicitis, patients are typically discharged within hours after surgery and free to return to their normal routines and work.

But in complicated appendicitis, a patient may be in the hospital for a day or two or more, may require IV antibiotics, and may need to have infected fluid drained. These people often present with more serious symptoms and may require a longer recovery of two weeks or more.

“The sicker you are before surgery, the longer your recovery after surgery,” Childs noted.

What are the signs of appendicitis?

Appendicitis is a medical emergency requiring immediate attention and may progress to perforated or ruptured appendicitis. 

The sooner you’re able to get treatment, the greater your odds are of preventing a rupture.

Symptoms of appendicitis include:

• abdominal pain
• lack of appetite
• vomiting
• constipation
• diarrhea
• fever 

If you’re experiencing these symptoms, you should go to the emergency room immediately. You will likely receive a CT scan to help medical professionals determine whether you have appendicitis.

“Appendicitis is slightly more common among males than females. It happens more often in people in their teens and 20s, but it may happen in people of any age, including older adults,” according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

Is a ruptured appendix life threatening?

Since appendicitis requires medical attention, it becomes very serious when left untreated.

Treating the appendicitis with a minimally invasive appendectomy helps prevent the progression of ruptured appendicitis.

Childs described untreated perforated appendicitis as a “smoldering localized infection,” a blockage in the form of a localized abscess or inflamed mass. 

“If left untreated, you can develop gangrenous appendicitis and then perforation and either localized or generalized peritonitis,” she said.

In these rare, severe cases, peritonitis — inflammation of the peritoneum (the thin layer of tissue that surrounds the inside of the abdomen and most of its organs — may result in sepsis and death.

“When you seek access to care early in the course, then you have choices. If you don’t, then you get sick, and don’t have choices,” Childs said.

What causes appendicitis — is it genetic? 

The appendix is a small pouch of intestinal tissue shaped like a finger located between the small and large intestines.

Appendicitis is common, but its causes are not fully understood.

Childs said that appendicitis has nothing to do with diet, lack of exercise, or genetics. Appendicitis can affect anyone, regardless of age, sex, or racial or ethnic background.

What causes appendicitis is as much a mystery as why we have this little finger-shaped organ, to begin with.

“We don’t know what the function of the appendix is,” Childs said.

“It’s like, you’re living, and something gets stuck in it. And it swells up, cuts off its own blood supply, becomes infected, and then can progress to gangrenous change and perforation, which is seepage of infected contents and then development of abscess or inflammatory mass or even generalized peritonitis. So that’s how it works. It’s a mechanical problem,” she said.

“It’s just bad luck.”

Takeaway

“Late Show” host Stephen Colbert announced his shows were canceled this week as he recovered from surgery due to a ruptured appendix.

Experts say a ruptured or perforated appendix is a complication of untreated appendicitis, a common and serious medical condition.

In most cases, surgery is recommended to treat appendicitis. In some cases, antibiotics may be sufficient.

If you have any symptoms resembling appendicitis, you should seek medical care immediately.

Stephen Colbert Cancels Shows to Recover From Ruptured Appendix, What to Know
Source: Pinoy Lang Sakalam

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