Intramedullary spinal capillary hemangiomas: clinical features and surgical outcomes

Abstract

<jats:sec> <jats:title>Object</jats:title> <jats:p>Intramedullary capillary hemangiomas are exceedingly rare lesions in the spinal cord, and have been previously reported in the literature as case reports. The authors review their experience in 5 surgically treated patients with intramedullary capillary hemangiomas and discuss the clinical features, radiological findings, and surgical outcomes.</jats:p></jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title>Methods</jats:title> <jats:p>Clinical and imaging data of 5 patients with intramedullary spinal capillary hemangiomas treated at a single institution were retrospectively analyzed.</jats:p></jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title>Results</jats:title> <jats:p>There were 4 men and 1 woman, and their ages ranged from 18 to 63 years (mean 47.2 years). The thoracic cord was affected in 4 patients, and the cervicothoracic cord in 1 patient. Four patients underwent a gross-total resection. One patient initially underwent a subtotal removal and then underwent a second surgery due to enlargement of the residual lesion. Long-term neurological function was improved in all patients and MRI showed no tumor recurrence.</jats:p></jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title>Conclusions</jats:title> <jats:p>Capillary hemangiomas should be considered in the differential diagnosis of intramedullary spinal vascular lesions. Complete resection is the treatment of choice for these lesions. When total resection cannot be achieved, subtotal or even partial removal of the tumor is advised and repeat removal of the lesion is indicated when residual tumor regrowth is associated with neurological deterioration.</jats:p></jats:sec>

Spinal capillary hemangiomas: Two cases reports and review of the literature

“…Within the spine, this tumor is commonly found in the vertebral bodies[ 1 ] but only a few cases of intradural capillary hemangioma have been reported [ Table 1 ]. [ 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 ] The tumor's characteristics are common in males, located at the thoraco-lumbar level, and clustered in the forth to sixth decades of life [ Table 2 ]. Thus, based on case series of 64 patients, authors propose a classification scheme for the spinal capillary hemangioma classification into five types [ Figure 5 ].…”

Intramedullary Spinal Capillary Hemangioma: Case Report

“…Furthermore, pain is the most common initial symptom in patients with intramedullary capillary hemangiomas, and the duration of illness is usually longer (> 6 months) than intramedullary gliomas. 1 The main differential diagnosis is cavernous angiomas. Capillary hemangiomas usually present with slowly progressive worsening of symptoms, while cavernous angiomas are often associated with acute neurological deterioration due to bleeding.…”

A Rare Case of Dumbbell-shaped Spinal Epidural Capillary Hemangioma

“…7,14 Complete surgical removal is the treatment of choice for epidural capillary hemangioma. 15,16 Recurrences have not been described in the literature and in most cases, as in our case, the pain relieved significantly, and sensory and motor deficits were improved from preoperative medical research council grade II to grade IV postoperatively.…”