Hydatid cyst of the spleen: treatment options

Hydatidosis is a highly endemic parasitic disease caused by Echinococcus. The spleen is infrequently involved in hydatid disease. Splenectomy is the conventional treatment, but there are other treatment options as well. In this article, we reviewed the data of 14 patients with splenic hydatidosis operated on during the last 20 years. The spleen was involved in 2.5% of all abdominal hydatidosis cases during this period and was the only location of disease in 7 of the 14 patients. Partial cystectomy and omentopexy was performed on 2 patients, and splenectomy was performed on 12 patients. In 2 patients, percutaneous drainage was the initial choice of treatment but was not successful, and splenectomy was performed eventually. There was no mortality, and the morbidity rate was 28.6%. Although currently splenectomy is the conventional treatment, experience suggests that partial cystectomy and omentopexy should be the procedure of choice for the treatment of splenic hydatidosis.