Ascites as an initial presentation of spontaneously ruptured hydatid cyst

Abstract

We describe the diagnosis of a 77-year-old woman admitted to our outpatient department with a 3-month history of abdominal bloating and distension. Abdominal computed tomography revealed a large cystic lesion in the posterior segment of the right hepatic lobe, with a separated germinal layer and widespread ascites with dense internal echoes and septal appearance. The result of a serum Echinococcus indirect haemagglutination test was positive and findings were indicative of the spontaneous rupture of a hydatid cyst into the peritoneal cavity without trauma. Ascites is rarely seen in the course of hydatid disease, but can result from cyst rupture into the peritoneal cavity. This should be considered in the differential diagnosis of ascites, especially in areas such as Turkey, where hydatid disease in endemic.