MINNEAPOLIS — Stephen Colbert is away from late-night TV following emergency surgery last week — the comedian's appendix burst. That made us wonder: What does the appendix do for our body? And why are ...

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, ...

In the United States, 1 in 15 people get appendicitis. Even though I was aware of this staggering statistic, I still never thought anything would happen to my sacred appendix… until it did. After a ...

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 ...

A. Most people never think about their appendix – until it's causing them severe pain. The appendix is a small, finger-shaped pouch attached to the start of the large intestine on the lower right side ...

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Is the appendix just an unimportant little blind alley in the bowel to be thrown in the bucket when you ...

I often experience pain in my lower-right side of my abdomen, and I suspect it is appendicitis. I plan to visit my gastroenterologist soon, but there is a nagging fear that my appendix might burst.