WOFAPS 2025 8th World Congress of Pediatric Surgery

Aim: Cystic echinococcosus (CE) is a common zoonosis affecting human health, especially in developing countries. The aim of this study was to retrospectively evaluate the patients with hydatid cysts of the liver who were followed and treated in our hospital.

Materials and Methods: Patients under the age of 18 years who were treated for hydatid liver cyst in our hospital between 2005 and 2022 were included in the study. Three different treatment modalities (albendazole only, PAIR (Puncture, Aspiration, Injection, Reaspiration), surgery) were applied. The data were compared statistically.

Results: 157 patients with a mean age of 11.2±3.4 (3.9-18) years were included in the study. 60.5% of the patients were male, whereas 35.7% of the patients had a history of animal contact and 4.5% had a family history of hydatid cysts. While 58.6% of the patients had abdominal pain, 8.9% had pulmonary symptoms, 3.8% had allergic symptoms, 26.1% of them was diagnosed with CE incidentally. Diameter of the cyst was <5 cm in 34 patients, between 5-10 cm in 91 patients and >10 cm in 32 patients. Surgery was performed in 55.4% of the patients, PAIR in 22.3%, and albendazole only in 21.7%. 43 patients developed complications. The success rate was 98.4% in patients who complied with the follow-up.

Conclusion: CE which is a serious public health problem, can affect patients in all age groups and may involve one or more organs. Appropriate treatment should be planned considering the localization of the cyst, its size, whether it is complicated or not, and the experience of the physician in liver CE disease, and the follow-up is essential in terms of recurrences after treatment.