Viability predictive factors of the daughter vesicles in hepatic cystic echinococcosis.

INTRODUCTION

Management of cystic echinococcosis (CE) requires knowledge of certain aspects related to the survival of Echinococcus granulosus. The viability of daughter vesicles (DV) is a determining factor in guiding therapeutic indications, particularly for transiently active Cysts type CE3b.

PURPOSE: To determine the predictive factors of DV viability and its impact on the therapeutic management of CE3b type.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

This is a prospective pilot study with an analytical aim on patients with cystic echinococcosis of the liver type CE2 and CE3b, operated in the General Surgery Department of Habib-Bourguiba Academic Hospital, Sfax-Tunisia for 22 months from March 2018 until December 2019. The unit of the study is the DV. A parasitological study of the DV was done in the parasitology laboratory.

RESULTS

During the study period, 27 (40.9%) of 66 operated CE Disease from 21 patients containing 248 DV were explored. The median viability of DV protoscoleces was 16.7%. In bivariate analysis, factors for viability of DV protoscoleces were: fever, acute cholangitis, hyperbilirubinemia, left liver location, rock water and bilious echinococcal fluid (EF), cyst size ≥ 43 mm, Intracystic pressure ≥ 35 mmHg, DV size ≥ 6.5 mm, volume, number of DV/cyst ≥ 5, and opaque wall (p < 0.05). Predictive factors for the Non-viability of DV were: CE3b type, purulent EF, gelatinous EF. In multivariate analysis, only CE2 type, cyst size ≥ 43 mm, number of DV/cyst ≥ 5 and DV size ≥ 6.5 mm were factors significantly associated with the viability of DV protoscoleces.

CONCLUSION

CE3b cysts without the criteria of viability of DV protoscoleces may become candidates for the 'Wait-and-Watch' procedure.