Treatment of complicated congenital splenic cysts.

Although rare in occurrence, the potential for congenital splenic cysts to enlarge, rupture, or become infected has been well documented. Presented is the case of a 13-year-old boy with an infected epidermoid cyst of the spleen, which presented as a solitary splenic abscess. The entity has traditionally been treated by splenectomy or, more recently, percutaneous drainage. However, given the inability of percutaneous drainage or sclerotherapy to permanently obliterate congenital splenic cysts, the authors managed this condition with percutaneous drainage and interval partial splenectomy. This achieves complete removal of the lesion while preserving splenic function.