A CASE OF THALAMIC HYDATID CYST

Cerebral hydatidosis account for approximately 1-2% of patients with h ydatid disease. Fifty percent to 75% of intracranial hydatid cysts are seen in children. The cerebral hydatid cysts are usually single and l ocated in the watershed of the middle cerebral artery. To our knowledg e, no case of hydatid cyst in the thalamic location has been reported. A 4-year-old boy presented with the left sided weakness. A right thal amic hydatid cyst without rim enhancement and perifocal oedema was det ected on the computed tomographic (CT) scan. He was put on albendazole , but headache, nausea and vomiting developed and hemiparesis got wors e in the following two weeks. The non-contrast repeat CT showed the pe ricystic oedema. The rim enhancement and pericystic oedema were also p resent on magnetic resonance imaging scans. The right thalamic hydatid cyst was removed via the transcallosal approach. The cyst aspiration and intracystic injection of hypertonic saline were performed before t he cyst removal. Leakage of the cyst fluid was conceivably the cause o f the development of rim enhancement and pericystic oedema. Patients r eceiving albendazole for the treatment of cerebral hydatid cysts shoul d be closely followed. The surgery is still the choice of treatment in cerebral hydatid cysts, in our opinion.