Echinococcectomy from heart under extracorporeal circulation

Echinococcus is a serious zooanthroponous disease affecting mostly the liver and lungs. The latter are rightly considered to be the main target organs of this disease. Echinococcus cysts (EC) are very rarely localized in the myocardium or cavities of the heart and the results on successful cystectomy under extracorporeal circulation (ECC) found in literature are few in number. 18 patients aged between 8 to 28 (mean 22.25±2.31) years, 10 males and 8 females, underwent surgery at V. Vakhidov Cardiac Surgery Center. Localization, dimensions and nature of cysts were determined by using echocardiography and computed tomography. According to the case history 5 out of 18 patients had undergone echinococcectomy from the liver or one of the lungs. All operations were performed from midline sternotomy under ECC and cardioplegia (61.4±10.9 and 44.5±5.2 min respectively). 4 patients with combined heart disease and target organs underwent a step-by-step operation, echinococcectomy from the heart followed by that from the target organs. Antihelminthic therapy was used only after cardiac surgery, since in the preoperative period there was a danger of destructing the cyst walls and their perforation. No relapse of the disease was observed in the long-term period.