Human alveolar echinococcosis (AE) caused by Echinococcus multilocularis is an underreported,
often misdiagnosed and mistreated parasitic disease mainly due to its low incidence.
The aim of this study was to describe the epidemiological and clinical characteristics
of human AE patients in Hungary for the first time.Between 2003 and 2018, epidemiological
and clinical data of suspected AE patients were collected retrospectively from health
database management systems.This case series included a total of 16 AE patients. The
mean age of patients was 53 years (range: 24-78 years). The sex ratio was 1:1. Four
patients (25%) revealed no recurrence after radical surgery and adjuvant albendazole
(ABZ) therapy. For five patients (31.3%) with unresectable lesions, a stabilization
of lesions with ABZ treatment was achieved. In seven patients (43.8%), progression
of AE was documented. The mean diagnostic delay was 33 months (range: 1-122 months).
Three AE related deaths (fatality rate 18.8%) were recorded.AE is an emerging infectious
disease in Hungary with a high fatality rate since based on our results, almost every
fifth AE patient died in the study period. Differential diagnosis and appropriate
surgical and medical therapy for AE is an urging challenge for clinicians in Hungary,
as well as in some other European countries where E. multilocularis is prevalent.
