BACKGROUND: Liver cysts are not uncommon. Rarely, they become symptomatic and require intervention. Surgery is the usual form of treatment; laparoscopic cyst unroofing has recently been introduced. METHODS: The current status of diagnosis and conventional therapy of hepatic cysts was summarized. The surgical literature was surveyed to collect all reported cases of minimally invasive treatment of these lesions, and the advantages and limitations of the methods were evaluated. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The general application of the minimally invasive technique should await a thorough evaluation of the operative complications and the outcome in terms of cyst recurrence in larger series of patients. However, laparoscopic wide cyst unroofing and laparoscopic cyst excision will probably become the methods of choice for the treatment of symptomatic liver cysts in carefully selected patients.
BACKGROUND: Liver cysts are not uncommon. Rarely, they become symptomatic and require intervention. Surgery is the usual form of treatment; laparoscopic cyst unroofing has recently been introduced. METHODS: The current status of diagnosis and conventional therapy of hepatic cysts was summarized. The surgical literature was surveyed to collect all reported cases of minimally invasive treatment of these lesions, and the advantages and limitations of the methods were evaluated. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The general application of the minimally invasive technique should await a thorough evaluation of the operative complications and the outcome in terms of cyst recurrence in larger series of patients. However, laparoscopic wide cyst unroofing and laparoscopic cyst excision will probably become the methods of choice for the treatment of symptomatic liver cysts in carefully selected patients.