Background Echinococcosis, or hydatid disease, is caused by the larval forms of taeniid cestodes belonging to the genus Echinococcus. Echinococcus granulosus and E. multilocularis are the primary species responsible
for human echinococcosis, and mostly they affect the liver. The disease course is typically slow, and the patients tend
to remain asymptomatic for many years.
Case presentation A case of 19-year-old male Somali from Medina, Saudi Arabia, was presented to the Mogadishu
Somali Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan Training and Research Hospital with the complaint of right upper quadrant
abdominal pain and dysuria for 1 month. A thorough physical examination, laboratory examination, and imaging
investigations, including abdominal sonography and computed tomography (CT), were conducted.
Both ultrasound and CT scans revealed a cystic lesion in the right lobe of the liver, confirming the diagnosis
of a hydatid cyst. Consequently, the patient underwent exploratory laparotomy. It was successfully managed surgically, and the definitive diagnosis was provided by the pathologist, confirming degenerated echinococcal cysts
that contain abundant debris. Additionally, the patient received oral albendazole both before and after the surgery
and after 7 months and is currently symptom-free.
Conclusions Hydatid disease in the liver may persist without symptoms and often goes undiagnosed due
to the slow growth of the cysts. The diagnosis needs careful history reporting, physical examination, and appropriate
imaging investigations.
Keywords Echinococcosis, Hepatic, Hydatid disease, Case report, Somalia