Total excision of mucinous biliary cystadenoma.

In the past year, total excision of mucinous biliary cystadenomas was carried out in three patients by shelling these lesions out from the liver substances. Formal hepatic resection was unnecessary. As any previous surgical procedure on the cyst will make subsequent excision technically more difficult, or even impossible, it is believed that excision should be carried out at the initial operation. Thus, a correct pre-operative or intra-operative diagnosis is important. This requires a high index of clinical suspicion, an adequate pre-operative work-up and an appropriate use of intra-operative ultrasound and frozen section to differentiate these lesions from other cystic lesions of the liver.