Treatment of Liver Abscess: A Comparison of Catheter Drainage and Needle Aspiration

Background The aim of the study was to evaluate the clinical presentation, and to investigate the effectiveness of continuous catheter drainage in comparison to needle aspiration in the treatment of liver abscesses. Method This is a comparative study of 50 patients, presented in outpatient and emergency department at the hospital,equally into two groups, percutaneous needle aspiration and pigtail catheter drainage. The effectiveness of either treatment was measured in terms of duration of hospital stay, days to achieve clinical improvement, 50% reduction in abscess cavity size and total/near total resolution of abscess cavity. Results The success rate was significantly better in catheter drainage group. The patients in pigtail catheter drainage group showed earlier clinical improvement and decrease in abscess cavity volume as compared to those who underwent percutaneous needle aspiration. Conclusions Percutaneous catheter drainage is a better modality as compared to percutaneous needle aspiration especially in larger abscesses which are partially liquefied or with thick pus.