[Sclerosing cholangitis and biliary sequelae of hydatid cyst of the surgically treated liver]

Worldwide literature and ten or so personal cases are reviewed as a basis for distinction or intrication of two aspect of post-hydatid sclerosing cholangitis; that of a localized lesion of diffuse lesions of the biliary tract. In both cases the action of the hydatid cyst is not due to toxins but to pressure on biliary duct walls, very variable according to site and size. This local action may be the only cause, provoking a specific type of lesion, a true sequela of an incomplete or delayed operation. In certain regions, or in the presence of biliary stasis and angiocholitis, passage of hydatid fluid into biliary tracts, normally tolerated by healthy biliary pathways, leads to a diffuse sclerosing cholangitis. The serious consequence of this eventuality is proved by the failure of many treatments, with subsequent inevitable liver transplants. Clinical circumstances and data explaining this complication allow necessary precautions to be taken. Furthermore, early treatment of hydatidosis or as radical as possible therapy for advanced lesions is curative of localized forms of the disease.