Objective: To define the clinical manifestations of echinococcal involvement of the urinary tract and to propose guidelines for treatment.
Patients and methods: A positive diagnosis of hydatid disease was made in seven patients and in all of these the cyst was located in the kidney only. The patients included four males and three females whose ages ranged from 6 to 56 years (mean 33.3).
Results: Surgical treatment involved total nephrectomy in six patients and partial nephrectomy in one patient. There was no operative or post-operative mortality and all patients were cured of the disease.
Conclusion: Despite its rarity, hydatid disease should be considered in the differential diagnosis of space-occupying lesions of the urinary tract.