Preface

Maternal and child health is an important public health issue because we have the opportunity to end preventable deaths among all women, children, and adolescents and to greatly improve their health and well-being. Far too many women, infants, and children worldwide have little or no access to essential, quality health services and education, clean air and water, and adequate sanitation and nutrition. Factors influencing the development of diseases in women and children are many, depending on genetic factors, the way the child is born, the dietary habits of the mother during pregnancy, the use of antibiotics during pregnancy, and so on. Health depends on climate, lifestyle, diet, education, and ethnic and racial divisions, among other factors. Are we educated enough about health? How much do we know about how to be healthy? Is health a decision of our free will with less financial investment and more knowledge? Is health the art of living in harmony with nature or the disease of a modern society burdened with financial power?

> **Dr. Miljana Z. Jovandaric and Sandra Babic** Clinical Centre of Serbia, Beograd, Serbia

**1**

**Chapter 1**

**Abstract**

**1. Introduction**

**2. Course of infection**

Hydatid Cysts in Children

*Arturo L. Delgado, Mfuneko Kopolo, Dumo Bangaza,* 

most affected, and the lungs were the organs most affected followed by liver.

**Keywords:** hydatidosis, pair, CE, echinococus granulosus, echinococcosis

echinococcosis is the most common form of the disease [2].

ously rupture or collapse and also disappear [5, 7].

The Echinococcosis is a zoonotic disease caused by a parasitic infection with the larval stage of the tapeworm Echinococcus genus [1]. Among the recognized species, two are of medical importance – E. granulosus and E. multilocularis – causing cystic echinococcosis (CE) and alveolar echinococcosis (AE) in humans respectively. Cystic

The Echinococcus can infect domestic animals, the adult tapeworms are carried by the definitive host (dogs) asymptomatically and can transmit the worms through defecation contaminating humans if ingest affected intermediate host meat (sheep, cattle, goats, and pigs). Human hydatid cyst is a health problem in some developing countries [3], this disease is usually asymptomatic for years until develop complications: such as compressive symptoms or rupture of the cyst causing anaphylactic shock. In most of the patients the symptoms are non-specific for the disease [4].

Have been reported in Ultrasound (US) surveys that the cysts may grow 1–50 mm per year or persist without changes according with [5, 6]; these cysts may spontane-

*Ernesto Rosales Gonzalez, Luke Yamkela and Moeketsi Thabana*

Hydatid disease is one of the important health problems in developing countries. Can affect any part of the human body, it commonly affects lungs and liver. Because of poor data and preventive measures in Sub-Saharan Africa, cystic echinococcosis (CE) is regarded as endemic disease. This is a retrospective study of children ages of 3 to 12 years admitted in pediatric surgical unit at Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital (NMAH), from April 2015 to aril 2020. We studied groups of age, sex, organs affected, treatment and complications. We studied 56 children; the group of age most affected was 5 to 10 years, females accounted for 51.8%, and male for 48.2%, lung hydatid cysts in 44.6% of cases, 41.1% had liver cysts, 8.9% of the patients had cysts in multiple locations. In 46 cases (82%), the treatment was surgical: punction-aspiration-injection and respiration (PAIR) removing the germinal layer, following in the post operatory with Albendazole and Praziquantel. In 10 cases (18//%) was given only medical treatment. Females were
