Percutaneous treatment of an orbital hydatid cyst: a new therapeutic approach.
OBJECTIVE
To describe the percutaneous treatment of an orbital hydatid cyst as an alternative approach to conventional surgery.


METHODS
In a 21-year-old man with diplopia and right proptosis, radiologic studies disclosed a 25 x 25 x 20-mm purely cystic mass in the right retrobulbar area. Based on the presumptive diagnosis of hydatid cyst, the cyst was treated percutaneously under ultrasonographic guidance with aspiration, 15% hypertonic saline injection, and reaspiration without any complication.


RESULTS
A substantial decrease in the size of the cyst was observed in the 3 months after treatment. Nine months after treatment, the shrunken cyst had a volume of only 0.5 ml, and the patient was asymptomatic. Twenty-one months after the procedure, the findings were consistent with those at 9 months of follow-up.


CONCLUSIONS
Percutaneous treatment of orbital hydatid cysts, which is more satisfactory to both the patient and the physician, may be a safe and effective alternative to surgical extirpation.
Akhan
O
O
Department of Radiology, Hacettepe University School of Medicine, Sihhiye, Ankara, Turkey.
Bilgiç
S
S
Akata
D
D
Kiratli
H
H
Ozmen
M N
MN
D000328:Adult; D004172:Diplopia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D004322:Drainage / Q000379:methods; D004443:Echinococcosis / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D005094:Exophthalmos / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D015822:Eye Infections, Parasitic / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009915:Orbit / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D009916:Orbital Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000601:surgery*; D014463:Ultrasonography