RESUMO
BACKGROUND: amebic liver abscess is frequently seen in endemic regions, and has a poor prognosis when diagnosis and treatment are inappropriate. AIM: to evaluate and compare our own results; to propose a new classification and therapeutic algorithm. DESIGN: an observational and retrospective study. METHOD: medical records were reviewed for sex, age, signs and symptoms, images, laboratory tests, size, location, treatment, hospital stay, and morbidity-mortality. RESULTS: sixteen patients with amebic liver abscess had been treated -9 were males, mean age was 30.56 years, all abscesses were solitary, 14 were in the right hepatic lobe, average size was 63.25, and 10 were of the collected type according to N Gbesso s classification. Seven patients had a good response to medical treatment, 6 needed percutaneous drainage, and 3 required surgery. Morbidity was 12.5% and mortality 0%. Average hospital stay was 7.68 days. CONCLUSION: our results are similar to those in other published series. The addition of two new groups to N Gbesso s classification provides better therapeutic orientation. We believe that early percutaneous drainage for collected abscesses bigger than 5 cm may improve symptoms and shorten hospital stay.