Appendicitis
2 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Appendicitis. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a disease caused by inflammation, suppuration, and consequent gangrene in the tissue of the vermiform appendix, usually due to insufficient circulation of blood in the part itself. The interior of the appendix is big enough to admit only a medium sized darning needle. The interior caliber of the appendix is, however, often found dilated and containing foreign material. The common belief that appendicitis is caused by the introduction of a grape or orange seed or some other seed into the appendix is practically erroneous, since such causes are extremely rare. It is true, nevertheless, that occasionally seeds, bits of bone, small shot, gallstones, beans, pins and other objects have caused fatal perforation of the appendix. The appendix is an organ which appears to have no actual use in the present machinery of man, but in the earlier stages of man's dev development it is believed to have been a large pouch which played an important part in the digestive operations of the human system. By ages of disuse it has gradually shrunk to its present dimensions, and is known to science as a vestigial organ. It is one of the most delicate and vital parts of the body, in the peritoneal cavity, usually to the right of the center of the abdomen, but in rare instances it has been found on the left side, and, still more rarely, otherwise placed. Until a comparatively recent period the frequent and fatal part played by the vermiform appendix in peritoneal disorders, and especially in septic peritonitis, has not been understood by the medical profession. When it was once proved that the poison which produced septic peritonitis came from the breaking down and con consequent perforation or from abscess of the appendix the very root of one of man's worst ailments was laid bare. Further practice established beyond a doubt that in a large majority of cases the appendix could be removed by a single surgical operation and the paus health if the tient restored to vigorous disease was discovered in time and correctly diagnosed. The surgeons now regard the operation itself as one of the most simple, but to obtain the best results it should take place within a few hours after the patient begins to suffer from the disease. Appendicitis usually occurs betv een the ages of 10 and 50 years. It is rare above or below those ages. It is more frequent among males than females, the exact proportion being unknown.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
ap-pen-di-si'tis, an inflammation of a small and apparently useless projection which grows from the extremity of the middle intestine. From its position it is thought that this projection was at one time useful to man, but it has long been disused. From its peculiar shape it is called the vermiform, or worm-shaped, appendix. Inflammation is attended with intense pain, due, it is thought, to the presence of a colony of minute parasitic plants. The lodgment of any foreign substance, as of a grape seed, is very likely to create a rawness of the appendix which makes it subject to the attacks of the bacillus. The first attack of the disease may be light, but it is almost certain to be followed by more severe attacks. Surgeons reduce the inflammation, then open the abdomen and remove the appendix with a knife. In a large majority of cases this treatment is successful. The last United States census reports 2,858 recorded deaths from this disease in the year 1900. The name is a new one. The history of the disease is entirely modern, though without doubt thousands have perished from it without knowing what ailed them. See Surgery 2026 Editor's Note: The 'apparently useless' appendix has been partly redeemed: it is now thought to be a reservoir of beneficial gut bacteria , restocking the intestine after illness. Appendicitis is still a surgical emergency and one of the commonest operations, though doctors now sometimes cure milder cases with antibiotics alone. (Ed: BR 2026-06-25)