Acute appendicitis is the most common illness that brings pediatric patients to the hospital for surgical treatment. Abdominal pain is the symptom because of which the patients go to the hospital. Some patients have severe pain and need analgesics before the final diagnosis and before surgery. After surgery most patient experience pain and at least 80 % of the patients need postoperative pain medication. For two decades there has been a clinical guideline for pain management in Kuopio University Hospital (KUH). The investigators aim was to evaluate how well the pain management for pediatric patient works in clinical practice.

Inclusion Criteria:

• In prospective patients informed consent obtained
• Appendectomy performed

Exclusion Criteria:

• No informed consent

152 pediatric patients that were operated on in KUH during the years 2010-2012 due to acute appendicitis.

In addition we assessed 26 pediatric appendectomy patients and their pain at rest, when coughing and when compressing the wound area propsectively when they were at hospital