A new study suggests that there is an alternative to surgery for appendicitis; Antibiotics. Antibiotics when used properly can save lives and help us fight infection, when our body needs help. One of those infections that has responded to antibiotics is appendicitis. Used for years in Europe to successfully treat the condition, antibiotics can help eliminate both the infection and the surgery safely. This is not the first study to show that there is another option. Unfortunately, doctors and hospitals are slow to adapt, especially since they have been conditioned to believe that surgery is in fact the only way and there would be a revenue loss for them if antibiotics which are low in cost replaced surgery in the US as the desirable option. The pressures to reduce costs in our system are huge, and with more studies comes more pressure on doctors to change the way they treat and proceed with patients who have the condition. Another benefit of course is the reduction of risk avoiding surgery brings. Surgical scars in the abdomen are a known cause of lower back pain, abdominal problems and problems in the core, which affects the way you walk. Check out this recent NY Times article on the newest study regarding non surgical treatment of appendicitis. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/19/health/antibiotics-resurface-as-alternative-to-removing-appendix.html?ref=health&_r=0