This laparoscopic technique, applied with selective criteria, can be a useful alternative for treating patients with liver hydatidosis because its results are comparable with those for open surgery studies involving similar follow-up time.

Good results were obtained when hydatid liver abscesses were treated aggressively.

In surgical decision making for patients with LH, the history of previous surgery for LH must be considered as a risk factor for postoperative morbidity.

South Chile is an endemic zoonosis area of hydatid disease, where prevalence rates can be 30 to 40/100 000 habitants. Not only is surgery performed on a great number of liver and lung hydatid cysts every year, but also upon cysts found in uncommon abdominal locations such as spleen, peritoneum and kidney. Information on this subject is scarce. We reviewed PubMed index from 1975 to 2001 and found only five related articles, reporting more than 30 cases.

Twelve pregnant women with hydatid disease are presented with median age of 29; 11 (91.7%) had a liver cyst and one (8.3%) had a kidney cyst as the primary disease location. Four (33.3%) had additional cysts located in the pelvis, peritoneal cavity and/or spleen; eight (66.7%) had two or more abdominal cysts. Three patients (25.0%) had surgery at the 3rd month after delivery and nine (75.0%) during their pregnancy. There was no histological evidence of hydatid disease in placentas, and no serological evidence of echinococcosis in the newborns was confirmed. One patient died after surgery. After a mean follow-up time of 39.5 months, we found one recurrent case of pelvic hydatid disease. Management of abdominal echinococcosis during pregnancy is an uncommon and difficult problem owing to the serious potential risks for mother and child.