[Alveolar echinococcosis--a new emerging disease?].

Alveolar echinococcosis is a rare zoonotic disease caused by the cestode larval stages of Echinococcus multilocularis. The Larva develops as a tumour like cyst (hydatid). Due to a slow cyst development, the early stage of the infection is always asymptomatic and the clinical symptoms develop after years later. In the Czech Republic the disease is still very rare. Only one alveolar echinococcosis case was reported 30 years ago. However, new alveolar echinococcosis cases occurred during last two years and some of them indicate autochtonic character of the transmission. With regard to the recent increasing risk of infection with E. multilocularis in Central Europe, we present two case reports of alveolar echinococcosis in a 33-year old woman and a 24-year old man. The reports show diagnostic process and therapy of the infection.