title: Primary Hydatid Cyst of the Brain in a Child: A Case Report.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Primary intracranial hydatid cyst is a rare location of human echinococcosis whose spontaneous, traumatic or even iatrogenic rupture, as in case of misdiagnosis, may cause anaphylactic reactions and dissemination.
  
  
  METHODS
  We discuss the management of a 9-year-old boy who was admitted to our Emergency Department with an intracranial hypertension syndrome. Head CT scan and brain MRI showed a huge intra-axial right temporo-parieto-occipital cyst with a marginal calcification, associated with left ventricular uncompensated hydrocephalus. DTI showed displacement of the ipsilateral corticospinal tract, whereas MR spectroscopy showed absence of normal brain metabolites and presence of succinate and lactate within the cyst. A diagnosis of hydatid cyst was then presumed on the basis of the neuroradiological findings. Empiric chemotherapy with albendazole was instituted and surgical en bloc removal of the cyst was obtained, allowing the patient to recover without complications. Diagnosis of brain echinococcosis was confirmed by laboratory tests.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  HE is still an endemic manifestation in some rural areas of the world, and it should be included in the differential diagnosis of children living in or coming from an endemic country who present with an intracerebral cyst. Early diagnosis and complete surgical removal of the intact cyst are the main factors that determine a favourable outcome.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences and Reproductive and Odontostomatological Sciences, Division of Neurosurgery, Università Degli Studi Federico II, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Imperato
authors.affiliation: Neurosurgery Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Consales
authors.affiliation: Neurosurgery Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy.
authors.forename: Marcello
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ravegnani
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy.
authors.forename: Elio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Castagnola
authors.affiliation: Laboratory Analysis Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy.
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bandettini
authors.affiliation: Neuroradiology Unit, Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rossi
keywords: Brain Diseases; Child; Echinococcosis