Hydatid cyst of the skull: report of four cases

Four new cases of cranial echinococcosis are presented and the literature is reviewed. Young males are most commonly affected. Early cases present as an expansile osteolytic lesion in the diploe. The more advanced forms manifest as multilocular or unilocular destructive lesions with adjacent soft-tissue masses. Two patients with unilocular hydatid cysts recovered completely after surgery. One youth with the multilocular form died four months after operation. The other patient is well two years after surgery. The location, anatomical forms of the lesion, and the importance of early diagnosis are stressed.