Management of a hydatid cyst in a center with high prevalence. Descriptive series.

Hydatidosis is a zoonosis caused by the larval stage of the genus Echinococcus. Humans are an accidental intermediate host. The main organ affected is the liver (70%). The incidence increases in endemic regions such as North Africa, Eastern Europe and South America. We present a descriptive series of cases treated in our hospital in the last 5 years. Demographic variables, cyst characteristics, as well as preoperative and postoperative variables are collected.

Epidemiological profile and fertility assessment of hydatid cysts surgically removed from patients in Djelfa province, Algeria.

A survey on human cystic echinococcosis was carried out in two public health establishments including the state hospital and one private medical clinic in Djelfa province (Algeria) to report the epidemiological profile of surgical cases and to examine the fertility of collected cysts. Total 18 hydatid cysts from 11 patients of different ages living both in rural and urban areas were obtained. Liver localization was noted in 73% of cases compared to lung localization (27%). Microscopic examination showed a fertility rate of 94.45% against 5.55% of sterile cysts.

Evaluation of direct costs associated with alveolar and cystic echinococcosis in Austria.

BACKGROUND: Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a globally occurring zoonosis, whereas alveolar echinococcosis (AE) is endemic only in certain parts of the Northern Hemisphere. The socioeconomic impact of human echinococcosis has been shown to be considerable in highly endemic regions. However, detailed data on direct healthcare-related costs associated with CE and AE are scarce for high income countries. The aim of this study was to evaluate direct costs of human disease caused by CE and AE in Austria. METHODS: Clinical data from a registry maintained at a national reference center for echinococcosis at the Medical University of Vienna were obtained for the years 2012-2014. These data were used in conjunction with epidemiological data from Austria's national disease reporting system and diagnostic reference laboratory for echinococcosis to assess nationwide costs attributable to CE and AE. RESULTS: In Austria, total modelled direct costs were 486,598€ (95%CI 341,825€ - 631,372€) per year for CE, and 683,824€ (95%CI 469,161€ - 898,486€) for AE. Median costs per patient with AE from diagnosis until the end of a 10-year follow-up period were 30,832€ (25th- 75th percentile: 23,197€ - 31,220€) and 62,777€ (25th- 75th percentile: 60,806€ - 67,867€) for inoperable and operable patients, respectively. Median costs per patients with CE from diagnosis until end of follow-up after 10 years were 16,253€ (25th- 75th percentile: 8,555€ - 24,832€) and 1,786€ (25th- 75th percentile: 736€ - 2,146€) for patients with active and inactive cyst stages, respectively. The first year after inclusion was the most cost-intense year in the observed period, with hospitalizations and albendazole therapy the main contributors to direct costs. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides detailed information on direct healthcare-related costs associated with CE and AE in Austria, which may reflect trends for other high-income countries. Surgery and albendazole therapy, due to surprisingly high drug prices, were identified as important cost-drivers. These data will be important for cost-effectiveness analyses of possible prevention programs.

Costs Associated with Surgically Treated Cases of Abdominal Cystic Echinococcosis: A Single Center's Experience from 2008 to 2014, Pavia, Italy.

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a globally distributed zoonosis caused by the Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato species complex. Four approaches are available for treatment of abdominal CE: surgery, percutaneous aspiration, chemotherapy with albendazole, and watch-and-wait. Allocation of patients to these different treatment options mainly depends on the stage of the cystic lesion. However, as available guidelines are not widely followed, surgery is often applied even without the correct indication outside referral centers. This is not only a disadvantage for the patient, but also a waste of money. In this study, we evaluated the cost of the surgical approach for abdominal CE by analyzing hospitalization costs for 14 patients admitted to the General Surgery Ward at the "San Matteo" Hospital Foundation in Pavia, Italy, from 2008 through 2014. We found that the total cost of a single hospitalization, including hospital stay, surgical intervention, personnel, drugs, and administrative costs ranged from €5,874 to 23,077 (median €11,033) per patient. Our findings confirm that surgery can be an expensive option. Therefore, surgical intervention should be limited to cyst types that do not benefit from nonsurgical therapies and appropriate case management can best be accomplished by using a cyst stage-specific approach.

Spleen hydatidosis treated by hemi-splenectomy: A low-morbidity, cost-effective management by a recently improved surgical technique.

BACKGROUND: Splenic hydatidosis is a rare condition and is usually managed by total splenectomy, which is associated to various complications, including overwhelming post-splenectomy sepsis and thrombosis. Probably due to supposed technical difficulties, the partial splenectomy is rarely performed being often unknown to physicians, infectious disease specialists and surgeons. METHODS: Demographic, clinical and surgical data were collected of four consecutive patients undergoing partial (or hemi-) splenectomy using an original, recently improved technique as a treatment for polar splenic hydatid cyst. The procedure implies a selective vascular ligation, a mechanical stapler-assisted section and haemostatic agents (Surgicel(®)) application on the cutting surface. Three patients were treated by laparotomy (including one affected by both liver and spleen localizations) whereas the last one was approached laparoscopically. RESULTS: Partial splenectomy operative time reached 74 min (range: 60-94 min) and blood loss was 8 ml (range: 5-10 ml). Hospital stay was 5.6 days (range: 5-7 days). At a mean follow-up of 20 months (range: 12-36 months), outcomes were uneventful. CONCLUSIONS: Partial splenectomy for hydatidosis is effective and safe. Physicians and surgeons should be aware of such an easy-to-catch option when dealing with benign splenic conditions, such as parasitic cysts. Cost-effectiveness, low morbidity and the possible prevention of splenectomy-related infectious complications should plead in favor of this technique in developing countries, where hydatidosis is endemic and post-splenectomy drugs and vaccines may be lacking.

The monetary burden of cystic echinococcosis in Iran.

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a globally distributed parasitic infection of humans and livestock. The disease is of significant medical and economic importance in many developing countries, including Iran. However, the socioeconomic impact of the disease, in most endemic countries, is not fully understood. The purpose of the present study was to determine the monetary burden of CE in Iran. Epidemiological data, including prevalence and incidence of CE in humans and animals, were obtained from regional hospitals, the scientific literature, and official government reports. Economic data relating to human and animal disease, including cost of treatment, productivity losses, and livestock production losses were obtained from official national and international datasets. Monte Carlo simulation methods were used to represent uncertainty in input parameters. Mean number of surgical CE cases per year for 2000-2009 was estimated at 1,295. The number of asymptomatic individuals living in the country was estimated at 635,232 (95% Credible Interval, CI 149,466-1,120,998). The overall annual cost of CE in Iran was estimated at US$232.3 million (95% CI US$103.1-397.8 million), including both direct and indirect costs. The cost associated with human CE was estimated at US$93.39 million (95% CI US$6.1-222.7 million) and the annual cost associated with CE in livestock was estimated at US$132 million (95% CI US$61.8-246.5 million). The cost per surgical human case was estimated at US$1,539. CE has a considerable economic impact on Iran, with the cost of the disease approximated at 0.03% of the country's gross domestic product. Establishment of a CE surveillance system and implementation of a control program are necessary to reduce the economic burden of CE on the country. Cost-benefit analysis of different control programs is recommended, incorporating present knowledge of the economic losses due to CE in Iran.

Analysis of economic burden for patients with cystic echinococcosis in five hospitals in northwest China.

The direct and indirect economic burden of human cystic echinococcosis (CE) was investigated in the five specialist hydatid hospitals in Xinjiang, PR China, to provide information for health policy in the future. A total of 2018 CE patients (age range 2-88 years) attending the hospitals were studied between 2004 and 2008. The per-person direct medical cost was US$1493.12 (95% CI 1438.43-1547.80) and the per-person direct non-medical cost was US$19.67. The indirect economic cost was US$1435.96 per person, and the disability-adjusted life-years (DALY) lost was approximately 1.03 DALY/person. This study is the first to combine the human capital method with DALYs to analyse the indirect CE economic burden in northwest China. Factors such as age, occupation and hospital level should be considered when developing polices to reduce the economic burden of CE.

Isolation and molecular characterization of recombinant Echinococcus granulosus P29 protein (recP29) and its assessment for the post-surgical serological follow-up of human cystic echinococcosis in young patients.

We synthesized recombinant Echinococcus granulosus protoscolex recP29 antigen to be preliminarily assessed by ELISA and immunoblotting. RecP29-serology was carried out on 54 young patients with cystic echinococcosis (CE). Patients were classified into either cured (CCE) (n=40) or non-cured (NCCE) (n=14) CE patients. RecP29 ELISA showed a gradual decrease of antibody concentrations in all CCE cases that were initially (before treatment) seropositive to this antigen (25 out of 40) or that seroconverted following treatment. A complete seronegativity was reached within 3 years post-surgery in all of these cases. Conventional HCF ELISA yielded seronegativity in only 10% of initially recP29-seropositive CCE patients (P=0.086). Likewise, recP29 immunoblotting yielded seronegativity in 93% of 29 out of 40 initially recP29-immunoblot-positive CCE patients after 3 years follow-up, compared with 72% in the HCF immunoblotting (P=0.060). Eleven out of 14 NCCE patients were initially positive by recP29 ELISA, and 10 out of these maintained a marked anti-recP29 antibody reactivity until the endpoint of the follow-up period. All 14 NCCE cases were initially seropositive by recP29 immunoblotting, and 13 cases remained seropositive until the end of the study. Thus, recombinant P29 protein appears prognostically useful for monitoring those post-surgical CE cases with an initial seropositivity to this marker.

Assessment of Echinococcus granulosus somatic protoscolex antigens for serological follow-up of young patients surgically treated for cystic echinococcosis.

Echinococcus granulosus protoscolex soluble somatic antigens (PSSAs) were assessed for their prognostic value in the serological follow-up of young patients treated for cystic echinococcosis (CE), compared to conventional hydatid fluid (HF) antigen. Based on different clinical courses and outcome of infection, as well as imaging findings, patients were retrospectively classified into two different groups including either cured CE (CCE; i.e., absence of active cysts or presence of inactive cysts, respectively) and noncured CE (NCCE) patients still presenting active cysts at the end of an up to 5-year follow-up period. An immunoglobulin G (IgG)-PSSA enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) showed a gradual decrease in antibody levels in CCE cases, reaching seronegativity in 20% of the cases at least within 5 years postsurgery. In comparison, the conventional IgG-HF ELISA showed a significantly lower progressive decrease in antibody levels, serology becoming negative in only 15% of CCE patients at the endpoint of the follow-up period. Serological analysis of PSSA by immunoblotting yielded an interesting immunoreactive double band of 27 and 28 kDa that, in 15 (75%) of 20 CCE cases, exhibited a rapid decrease and subsequent disappearance of respective antibody reactivities within 3 years postsurgery. Conversely, anti-27- and -28-kDa antibody reactivity strongly persisted until the endpoint of the follow-up period in all of the five NCCE patients. Further analysis of the 27- and 28-kDa doublet by using affinity-purified antibodies showed that the double band was not detectable in HF. Furthermore, a predominantly IgG4 subclass-restricted humoral immune response against the 27- and 28-kDa antigens was demonstrated in seroreactive CE patients. Overall, an anti-27- and -28-kDa response appeared to correlate with cyst activity. In conclusion, PSSA represents a useful candidate to carry out a serologic follow-up of CE subsequent to treatment and deserves further respective evaluation for other age groups of CE patients.

Hospital and community surveys reveal the severe public health problem and socio-economic impact of human echinococcosis in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China.

A comprehensive study of human echinococcosis (caused by Echinococcus granulosus or E. multilocularis), including assessment of hospital records, community surveys and patient follow-up, was conducted in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (NHAR), China. In contrast to hospital records that showed 96% of echinococcosis cases were caused by cystic echinococcosis (CE), 56% of cases detected in active community surveys were caused by alveolar echinococcosis (AE). The AE and CE cases co-existed frequently in the same village, even occurring in the same patient. A serious public health problem caused by echinococcosis was evident in southern NHAR, typified by: a long diagnostic history for both AE and CE (7.5 years) compared with a shorter treatment history (4.7 years); a significant mortality rate (39%) caused by AE in one surveyed village, where patients had no previous access to treatment; family aggregation of CE and AE cases; a high proportion of both AE (62.5%) and CE (58%) in females; a high rate of recurrent surgery (30%) for CE demonstrated by surgical records; and frequent symptomatic recurrences (51%) because of discontinuous or sporadic access to chemotherapy for AE. The disease burden for both human AE and CE is thus very severe among these rural communities in NHAR, and this study provides the first attempt to determine the costs of morbidity and surgical intervention of human CE and AE cases both at the hospital and community level in this setting. This information may be useful for assessing the cost effectiveness of designing effective public health programs to control echinococcosis in this and other endemic areas in China and elsewhere.

[The importance of exercise testing for the functional assessment of lung resectional candidates]. / Akciger rezeksiyonu yapilacak hastalarin fonksiyonel degerlendirmesi için egzersiz testinin önemi.

UNLABELLED: Although there are a lot of physiologic tests to evaluate the preoperative cardio-pulmonary reserve in the patients who candidate lung resection, there is no a single gold standard test to suggest the postoperative pulmonary complications. In this study, we researched the importance of the exercise testing in the evaluation preoperative cardio-pulmonary reserve. We analyzed a series of 26 consecutive patients with a resectable lung disease [26 male patients, mean age 51.5 +/- 15.8 (13-78 years), 22 non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC), 2 bronchectasis, 1 hydatid cyst, 1 empyema]. Patients were evaluated by pulmonary function testing (PFT), diffusing capacity of lung for carbonmonoxide (DLCO), and symptom-limited exercise testing. After the functional examination, 26 patients underwent pulmonary resections with standard thoracotomy: 4 segmental or wedge resection, 11 lobectomies, 5 pneumonectomies, and 1 cystotomia. The mean stay in the ICU was 2.6 days (+/- 3.5), the mean hospital stay was 11.9 days (+/- 8.0). Postoperative complications (within 30 days) occurred in 9 (34.6%) patients of whom one died (overall mortality rate was 3.8%). There was no relationship between the presence of complication and physiologic tests (PFT, DLCO). The patients were divided three groups according to peak oxygen consumption (VO(2)/kg peak) (mL/kg/min) (< 10, 10-20, > 20 mL/kg/min). There was no significantly difference among these groups and complication rates (p= 0.056), but the complication rate was higher in the group of VO(2)/kg peak < 10 mL/kg/min (75%). On the other hand, there was a significantly relationship between the presence of only pulmonary complication and VO2/kg peak (p= 0.034). CONCLUSION: We think that the preoperative functional evaluation in the patients with lung resection candidate is prominent to reduce the postoperative mortality and morbidity and especially cardiopulmonary exercise testing has an important role to suggest the postoperative pulmonary complications as a major complication.

Twenty years of percutaneous treatments for cystic echinococcosis: a preliminary assessment of their use and safety.

Image-guided percutaneous treatments for echinococcal cysts were introduced in the mid-eighties. Today they represent a third therapeutic option, after surgery and benzimidazole derivatives. Two types of percutaneous treatments are available, based on the destruction of the germinal layer or the evacuation of the endocyst. To assess the extent of their use and their safety, a Medline search of the literature on this subject was performed. The number of cysts treated, their anatomical sites, the complications and, length of follow-up (when available), were all examined. The results show that percutaneous treatments for cystic echinococcosis are safe and efficacious in selected anatomical sites, provided basic safety issues are correctly addressed. However, before drawing final conclusions, a more detailed analysis of the literature is needed. Percutaneous treatments could be simplified and made more effective if a scolecidal agent could be found that melts the entire endocyst without causing harm to the biliary epithelium.

Cystic echinococcosis in Jordan: socioeconomic evaluation and risk factors.

The costs of illness and surgical intervention for human cystic echinococcosis (CE) cases in Jordan was economically evaluated by 77 surgeons and 77 CE patients. The cost of diagnosis for each CE case was 111.30 US Dollars and 146.20 US Dollars as estimated by surgeons and patients, respectively. The cost of surgical extraction of hydatid cysts for each case was 590.20 US Dollars and 638.50 US Dollars as estimated by both groups, respectively. Knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of 77 CE patients as well as several Jordanian groups with different occupations including 144 shepherds, 119 settled livestock owners, 25 slaughter house workers, 400 university students and 80 inhabitants of a CE focus in southern Jordan were analyzed through a set of questionnaires. All of these groups had poor knowledge of CE, especially the source and causes of infection. All practices and attitudes of each group favored continuous transmission of the parasite and indicate the need for the implementation of a proper control program in the country.

Assessment of the immunological surveillance value of humoral and lymphocyte assays in severe human cystic echinococcosis.

Thirty cystic echinococcosis (CE) patients in Uruguay with severe bone or secondary disseminated echinococcosis were immunologically assessed using cellular (lymphocyte transformation assay, LTA) and humoral (specific antibody and subclass responses, circulating antigen and circulating immune-complexes) immunological assays during the course of chemotherapy (albendazole and/or praziquantel). CE patients were divided into 4 groups, according to clinical treatment and outcome: (I) surgery and chemotherapy, (II) chemotherapy with outcome unchanged, (III) chemotherapy with outcome improved, and (IV) chemotherapy considered cured. Increased circulating antigen was of prognostic value in some severe CE cases where levels remained high and/or increased. The lymphoproliferative response in vitro to Echinococcus granulosus antigen was statistically greater in all patient groups compared to normal individuals but at lower levels in improved or cured CE patients. Levels of non-specific LTA response were significantly lower than controls for all groups during albendazole treatment (P < 0.001) but returned to normal levels in cured patients, a result consistent with parasite-induced suppression of cellular responses. This study suggests that, at least in severe osseous and secondary CE, immunosurveillance by specific antibodies, especially total specific immunoglobulin, was overall of more practical use than antigen-specific in-vitro lymphocyte transformation assays.

Estimating the economic effects of cystic echinococcosis: Uruguay, a developing country with upper-middle income.

Cost-benefit analyses, run before the commencement of a programme to control a parasitic disease, should include estimates of the economic losses attributable to the disease. Uruguay, a middle-income, developing country, has a recent history of persistent problems with cystic echinococcosis, in both its human population and livestock. The economic effects in Uruguay of this disease, caused by the larval stage of the canine tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus, have now been evaluated. Data on the incidence of the disease, in humans and livestock, were used to construct cost estimates. The estimated minimum cost (U.S.$2.9 million/year) was based on the condemnation costs of infected offal together with the actual costs of the hospital treatment of the human cases. The estimate of the maximum cost (U.S.$22.1 million/year) also included the production losses resulting from lower livestock efficiency and the reduced income of individuals with morbidity attributable to the disease.

Hidatidosis en la provincia de Ñuble: estudio descriptivo sobre egresos hospitalarios entre los años 1993 y 1997 / Hidatidosis at the Ñuble province: descriptive study of hospital discharges from 1993 to 1997

La hidatidosis es un importante problema de salud pública que se encuentra subestimado por la dificultad de su vigilancia epidemiológica. Para estimar la magnitud de la subnotificación de esta patología, se analizaron los egresos hospitalarios en comparación con las notificaciones realizadas en el formulario RMC 14 (Registro Mensual Consolidado de Enfermedades de Notificación Obligatoria), entre los años 1993 y 1997 en la provincia de Ñuble. Se observó que el porcentaje de subnotificación alcanzó un 73 por ciento. Las tasas de morbilidad y mortalidad por esta enfermedad son mayores en la provincia de Ñuble, con relación al país, con una tendencia estable en el tiempo. Esta patología presenta su sintomatología preferentemente en edades productivas, con largas estadías hospitalarias, con intervenciones quirúrgicas importantes y licencias laborales prolongadas; además de la repercusión sobre la producción animal, lo cual hace necesario realizar programas preventivos focalizados en los lugares de mayor riesgo

Manejo Quirúrgico de la Hidatidosis en el Hospital II La Oroya-Perú / Surgical Management of Hydatid Disease at the La Oroya Hospital IPSS in Peru

Realizamos un estudio retrospectivo sobre el manejo quirúrgico de la Hidatidosis en el Hospital II del Instituto Peuano de Seguridad Social de La Oroya; Región Andrés Avelino Cáceres entre Enero 1987 y Junio de 1984. Revisamos 201 casos operados; 85 mujeres y 116 varones, siendo la edad mínima 05 años y la máxima 79 años; fueron operados de hidatidosis pulmonar 105 caasos; hidatidosis hepática 68; peritoneal 12 casos; asociación pulmón-hígado 08, asociación hígado-peritoneal 07 e hidatidosis esplénica 01. La incisión preferida en hidatidosis pulmonar fue toracotomíaen "S" itálica; y la Kocher en la hidatidosis hepática infantil, mientras que en los adultos fue la paramediana derecha supraumbilical. Dentro de los hallazgos operatorios fueron complicados 55 casos en pulmón y 27 casos en hígado; por otro lado se extirparon un total de 333 quistes, siendo múltiples en 39 casos pulmonares y 29 hepáticos. La técnica operatoria más usada fue QUISTECTOMIA CAPITONAJE; dejando generalmente 02 drenes. Dentro de las complicaciones post operatorias tenemos la fistula bronquial, fistula biliar y neumonía como las más frecuentes. En todos los casos se utilizó anestesia general inhalatoria; con tiempo operatorio promedio para pulmón 2h20 y para hígado 2h27; con cuatro casos de mortalidad en nuestra serie (2 por ciento).

[Cost of hydatidosis surgery at the Sousse University Hospital (Tunisia)]. / Coût de l'hydatidose chirurgicale à l'Hôpital universitaire de Sousse (Tunisie).

Hydatidosis is a very common disease in Tunisia, with a great economical importance for the health care system. In 1983, for Sousse Hospital, the total cost for hydatidosis was 125,000 US $. More than half of these costs were for "hospital days". A more rational in the services administration would make decrease these costs, but the best is a special attention to primary prevention.