Giant intracranial hydatid cyst

Abstract

Hydatid disease is caused by the infestation of the larvae of Taenia echinococcus . The definite hosts of echinococcus are various carnivores, the common being the dog. All mammals (more often being sheep and cattle) are hosts. Humans are infected through the feco-oral route by the ingestion of food or milk contaminated by dog feces that contain the ova of the parasite or by direct contact with dogs. The eggs lose their enveloping layer in the stomach, releasing the embryos. The embryos pass through the wall of the gut into the portal system and are carried to the liver where most of the larvae are entrapped and encysted. Some may reach the lungs, and occasionally, some may pass through the capillary filter of the liver and lungs and enter into the systemic circulation. We report a case of giant intracranial left temporoparietooccipital extra-axial hydatid cyst with a size of 12.5 x 8.5 cm in a 5-year-old male presented with holocranial headache with the diminution of vision and papilledema with right hemiperesis successfully managed in our department surgically.