Ann. Pak. Inst. Med. Sci. 2010; 6(2): 124-126

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the different presentation of hydatid cyst and the results of surgery in this locality.
Study design: Case series of 25 Patients.
Place and duration of Study: Department of General Surgery D.H.Q.Hospital Bannu NWFP Pakistan from Jan 2004 to Dec 2004.
Materials and Methods: All those patients who were diagnosed as Hydatid Cyst in abdominal organs clinically and by ultrasonography, and cofirmed by exploration of abdomen. The median follow up was 4years.
Results: A total of 25 patients were managed surgically during the study period. The mean age of patients was 35 years and male to female ratio was 2—01. 22 patients (88 %) had hydatid cyst in the Liver. One patient (04 %) had a hydatid cyst in the omentum, One patient had cyst in the broad ligament (04 %).One patient had cyst in the spleen (04 % ). All Patients underwent exploratory laparotomy. Postoperative complications were noted in 04 patients (16 %). Mortality was (0%).
Conclusions: Present study suggests that Hydatid cyst can present in any organ of abdomen and the treatment of this disease is surgical exploration followed by post operative anthelmentic medication. Though the study was conducted in a periphery hospital but the results are comparable to the tertiary hospitals.
Key Words: Hydatid disease, Presentation, Outcome.


Introduction

Hydatidosis is a parasitic disease caused by Echinococcus granulosis .The adult form of the parasite is not seen in humans. Its larvae induce the disease in humans, cows, sheeps and domestic animals. E.granulosis is a small (3-5 mm long) tape worm, that resides in the jejunum of dog (definitive host) and other canines .That produce eggs. The definitive host may be infected with thousand of worms.^{1, 2}
Humans become infected by ingesting eggs of the adult tape worm which have been passed in dog foeces. The eggs hatch in the small bowel, penetrate the gut mucosa and enter the blood stream, from which they are distributed to various sites in the body, where the larvae settle, they begin development to form hydatid cysts.³
Hydatid cysts are found most commonly in the liver (52-77%), lung (8.5-44%), abdominal cavity (8%), Kidney (7%) Central Nervous System (0.2-2.4%), bone (1-2.5%), spleen 2.5% and muscle 5%.^1,4-6
The clinical presentation of hydatid disease depends on the size and site of the lesion and the accessibility of the organ involved. Pre operative diagnosis of hydatid cysts can be made ultrasonically and confirmed by CT scan. MRI is also of considerable value in cases of intracranial hydatidosis. Different serological tests are also available as hydatid immuno electrophoresis, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), latex agglutination and indirect haemagglutination (IHA) test.⁷