[Echinococcosis of the spleen. Its conservative surgical treatment]

Echinococcosis cysts in the spleen are very rare, even in endemic areas. We report here on 4 patients (0.5% of the total number of cases of echinococcosis disease) who have been treated in the University Hospital Granada from 1970 to 1990. Formerly, splenectomy was for most surgeons the recommended surgical procedure. From 1980, however, most authors have rejected such a radical procedure and most now recommend conservative surgery of the spleen. We have always followed this conservative procedure, as of course in cases of liver echinococcus, that is: cyst enucleation and marcupialisation (Posadas-Dew method), if there are no cyst complications. And in cases of infected or suppurating cysts we used drainage-marsupialisation. We have obtained very good results: no mortality was recorded.