Musculoskeletal hydatid disease: report of a rare case with primary and exclusive localization in right hemi-pelvis and femur

Abstract

Hydatid Disease (HD), also called Echinococcosis or Hydatidosis, is a parasitic infection caused by the larval stage of the tapeworm Echinococcus: E. granulosus or E. multilocularis. HD occur most frequently in liver or lungs, rarely in brain, skeletal muscles, bones, kidneys, spleen. Bone infestation of Echinococcosis hydatid cysts occurs respectively by haematogenous seeding and progressive invasion into bone by lesions in the adjacent soft tissues. Patients with musculoskeletal HD clinically show the disease in adulthood because the lesions develop very slowly. In some cases, HD is an uncommon cause of soft tissue mass, pain and neurovascular symptoms due to compression or to secondary infection. Diagnostic imaging plays an important role in the diagnosis of HD and in the differential diagnosis with soft tissue tumors. We present a rare case of male patient of 42 year-old with diagnosis of HD with primary and exclusive localization in right hemi-pelvis and femur.