Hydatid Cyst Disease in Khozestan Province, Iran

Background: Hydatid cyst is endemic in Iran. Liver is the most common organ involved. Lung, brain, and other organs may also be involved. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical manifestation and complications of hydatid cyst disease in Khuzestan, Iran.
Methods: This was a retrospective study. The study population included both children and adults admitted in Imam Khomeini hospital over a 5-year period starting from 2001. In this study, age, sex, place of residency, fever, jaundice were asked and recorded for each cases. data was analyzed by SPSS ver 16.0 (Chicago, IL,USA). T-test and Chi-square were used for comparison.
Results: Of the 289 cases, 44.6% were males and 55.4% were females. Mean±SD of age was 41.6±7.59. Liver and lung involvements were seen in 174 (60.2%) and 97(33.7%) of cases respectively. The majority (64%) of all cases were from rural area. The recurrence rate was 19.3%. Frequency of clinical manifestion in descending order included abdominal pain (58.8%), dyspnea (32.9%), cough (23.9%), jaundice (22.9%), and fever (21.1%). The mean age in patients with jaundice was significantly higher than patients without jaundice (P<0.001). Icterus was more common in male cases than female cases (p=0.024). Dyspnea was more common in female cases (P=0.0024). There was a higher incidence of dyspnea in patients with dull abdominal pain than cases without abdominal pain (P<0.001).
Conclusion: Most of the cases had liver and or lung involvement. Jaundice was more common in males than in females. Dyspnea was more common in female cases.