It was the first day of spring break in 1992 in Phoenix, and 12-year-old Heather Smith was excited for her family's upcoming ski trip. But before Smith and her family had even packed their snow pants, ...

When doctors and patients consider the appendix, it's often with urgency. In cases of appendicitis, the clock could be ticking down to a life-threatening burst. Thus, despite recent research ...

The appendix may not be useless after all. The worm-shaped structure found near the junction of the small and large intestines evolved 32 times among mammals, according to a new study. The finding ...

Baltimore Orioles rookie Hayden Penn may go down in the record books as the first pitcher to miss his season debut because of appendicitis. Penn was to start in a game last week but was rushed to the ...

Long denigrated as vestigial or useless, the appendix now appears to have a reason to be - as a "safe house" for the beneficial bacteria living in the human gut. The gut is populated with different ...

The appendix or vermiform appendix is a muscular structure attached to the large intestine in the human body. It is a narrow tube resembling a worm and is named after the Latin word "vermiform" which ...

The body's appendix has long been thought of as nothing more than a worthless evolutionary artifact, good for nothing save a potentially lethal case of inflammation. Now researchers suggest the ...

We’re all familiar with the fact that we have an organ called an appendix—and more importantly that it can cause some scary trips to the ER. But does anyone know what the eff an appendix actually is?

Courtney is a registered nurse with over 13 years of experience in the clinical setting, helping individuals navigate their way through their healthcare journeys. She has been in the frontlines ...