Challenges surrounding the delayed diagnosis of a giant ovarian mucinous cystadenoma in low resourced settings:

Description

The difficulty in the diagnosis of giant ovarian cysts (GOC) is a delicate situation for low and middle-income countries where the resources are very limited. GOC have become rare nowadays as they are diagnosed and managed early due to the availability of good imaging modalities. The purpose of this case report is to show how a huge cystic ovarian mass can mislead the diagnosis of multiple pregnancies, ascites, and intestinal tuberculosis in a woman during reproductive age in low-resource countries. The factors surrounding the late presentation of giant ovarian cysts in sub-Saharan Africa were also discussed.
The authors present the case of 36-year-old women, para 4, that was referred to our center with a grossly distended abdomen wrongly diagnosed as multiple pregnancy, massive ascites, and intestinal tuberculosis. She was reviewed in different health care facilities without accurate diagnosis. The abdominopelvic ultrasound scan revealed a giant left ovarian cyst.
She underwent an exploratory laparotomy where the giant cyst was excised successfully with an uneventful postoperative stay. Histopathology revealed a mucinous cystadenoma.
There are several challenges in accurate and time.