Radiofrequency Ablation of Hepatic Cysts: Evaluation of Therapeutic Efficacy

PurposeTo evaluate therapeutic efficacy of radiofrequency (RF) ablation for treatment of hepatic cysts with the use of a single cooled electrode after aspiration of the cyst contents.Materials and MethodsFourteen hepatic cysts (mean diameter, 7.8 cm; range, 3.7–12.7 cm) in 14 patients treated by RF ablation during a 3-year period were retrospectively reviewed. RF ablation was performed after aspiration of the cyst contents until a cyst measured no more 3 cm in diameter. The volumes of each cyst on computed tomography (CT) were measured before and after RF ablation, and volume reduction rates were calculated.ResultsFollow-up CT was performed a mean of 437 days after RF ablation (range, 32–1,326 d). One cyst was surgically removed because of regrowth. Nine had a volume reduction rate greater than 75%. Eight of nine cysts 8.5 cm in diameter or smaller markedly decreased in volume (mean reduction rate, 93.6%; range, 76.8%–100%). Cysts 8.5–12.0 cm in diameter (n = 4) showed a 61.7% reduction rate (range, 26.0%–98.8%). The mean volume reduction rate was 83.5% (range, 8.1%–100%) in the nine cysts with less than 10 mL of residual fluid after aspiration, compared with 43.2% in the five cysts with more than 10 mL of residual fluid. The volume reduction rate was 34.4% in septated cysts after aspiration, in contrast to 83.0% in nonseptated cysts. There were no major complications from RF ablation.ConclusionsRF ablation may be effective for the treatment of benign hepatic cysts and may be considered as an alternative to conventional sclerotherapy or surgery.