Littoral Cell Angioma of the Spleen

Abstract

Objectives The purpose of this study was to evaluate the sonographic and pathologic features of littoral cell angioma of the spleen in 7 patients. Methods The sonographic appearance in 7 cases of littoral cell angioma confirmed by surgical pathologic examination was retrospectively reviewed. All underwent color Doppler imaging. Two underwent contrast‐enhanced sonography. The sonographic appearance was compared with pathologic findings. Results Splenic lesions were solitary in 5 cases and multiple in 2 cases. The masses ranged from 10 to 64 mm in maximum diameter. Five hypoechoic and 2 hyperechoic lesions on grayscale sonography corresponded to few and multiple blood‐filled spaces on pathologic examination, respectively. Four hypovascular lesions, 1 hypervascular lesion, and the other 2 hypervascular lesions full of color flow signals on color Doppler imaging corresponded to few, several, and multiple arteries on pathologic examination. On contrast‐enhanced sonography, 1 hypervascular lesion full of color flow signals showed homogeneous hyperenhancement for 8 minutes during the arterial and parenchymal phases. One hypovascular lesion showed inhomogeneous isoenhancement transiently during the arterial phase and became hypoechoic later. Conclusions Littoral cell angioma is a primary vascular splenic neoplasm with variable features on grayscale sonography and color Doppler imaging as well as contrast‐enhanced sonography. The sonographic appearance of littoral cell angioma mainly depends on the type and number of tumor vessels.