Surgical experience of hydatid disease of the liver: Omentoplasty or capitonnage versus tube drainage

Background/Aims: The aim of this paper was to report our experience and com parison of surgical treatment methods for hepatic hydatid cyst disease. Methodology: Between January 1990 and December 1998, 66 patients with hepat ic hydatid disease in two centers were operated on. Patients were assessed by clinical examination, laboratory methods and ultrasonography and compute d tomography and magnetic resonance. We also compared omentoplasty or cappi tonage with external drainage with or without cyctectomy. Results: Common pathology was solitary cysts and most of them were placed i n the right lobe. Omentoplasty was performed for 35 cysts and cappitonnage for 36 and external drainage for 31 cysts. No operative mortality was repor ted. Patients with omentoplasty developed fewer complications and had a sig nificantly shorter hospitalization than those with external drainage Conclusions: Although omentoplasty seems to be the best possible surgical a lternative for the radical treatment of hepatic hydatid cysts, the manageme nt of hydatid cysts should be flexible, taking into consideration a number of factors and variables.