[A dead and calcified right ventricular hydatic cyst. The limits of imaging]

Cardiac echinococcosis is rare and only represents around 0.5% of all hydatic locations. Right ventricular location is exceptional.

We report the case of a 72 year-old man having a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. During an acute respiratory failure, cardiac ultrasonography showed a right ventricular tumour. After respiratory stabilisation, surgical intervention found the tumour, the histopathological study of which concluded in a dead and calcified hydatic cyst.

This case report demonstrates the limits of modern imaging and the difficulties in diagnosing a calcified right intra-ventricular hydatidosis. It is important to emphasize the exceptional nature of this form and the scarcity of its localisation. Surgical treatment is crucial in the majority of cases and helps to confirm the diagnosis.

In endemic areas, the discovery of an intra-cardiac tumour must evoke and eliminate echinococcosis. Calcification of a cardiac location remains exceptional.