Hemangioma is a benign tumor that has formed as a result of vascular damage. Most often, this skin condition occurs in children and adolescents. In the older population, hemangioma is less common, mainly localized on the back. Therefore, it is worth understanding the question of what it is - spinal hemangioma in adults.
Causes
At the moment, there is no single point of view on the causes of the appearance of a geomangioma. It is a well-known fact that the origin of this pathology is related to the malfunction of processes during which vessels are formed during fetal development.
Experts believe that the possibility of the appearance of pathology in newborns increases due to the following factors:
- The presence of a complicated pregnancy.
- A woman in labor is older than 36 years.
- A newborn is lightweight or premature.
- Eclampsia during pregnancy.
- During the period of carrying the child, the mother takes certain medications.
- Mother living in adverse environmental conditions.
- Viral diseases during pregnancy.
- During pregnancy, the expectant mother drinks alcohol.
In adolescence, this ailment appears in the body, in which there is a predisposition under the influence of changes in hormonal balance and liver diseases.
In adults, the appearance of this pathology is possible due to such reasons as weakened immunity, being in an unfavorable environmental situation, or a long stay in direct sunlight. In adults, hemangioma often occurs in the spine, face, or on the lips.
Symptoms
It is quite easy to identify the appearance of this ailment. In a newborn, pathology is determined almost immediately after birth.
Simple hemangioma is a formation of red or burgundy color, located on the surface. Its distinctive feature is that such an education has an uneven shape, and it is smooth. If you press on the formation, it will turn pale, and later return to its original color.
Cavernous hemangioma is located under the skin, is a nodular formation, soft and elastic in consistency. If you press on this formation, then it will turn pale and decrease in size, and later return to its original appearance.
The combined type of hemangioma is a mixture of internal and superficial. The appearance of such a tumor depends on which part prevails and which are part of the tissue.
In newborns, the hemangioma grows for the first six months, and later its growth will be slowed down or completely stopped. In size, the tumor can be about 15 centimeters or even more. And it’s warm to the touch. When a tumor appears in the ear, then in the process of its growth hearing function deteriorates, and if the tumor is located on the eyelid, then the function of vision deteriorates.
Cavernous hemangioma
This is a limited site located under the skin in the form of a “glomerulus” of blood vessels.
This type of vascular hemangioma is difficult to treat and rare among other species, since blood clots can form inside the cavities, and it can be located inside the organs. In most cases, it appears during the first days or weeks of life and grows most actively in the first six months. Recognizing it and making a diagnosis is very simple, because it is soft to the touch and has a brown color, in most cases it protrudes above the surface of the skin.
In addition to the upper layers of the skin, cavernous hemangioma can be found in human organs. The most dangerous place is the liver. It is impossible to recognize this tumor without examination, since its presence is asymptomatic, with trauma, bleeding into the abdominal cavity can begin, which will not be easy to stop, since in most cases the blood beats from the artery.
No less dangerous places for these formations will be mucous membranes:
And this is dangerous, because in the case of an increase in cavernous hemangioma, a person may lose vision or hearing. With diabetes, treatment is complicated, as there is a risk of infection of the wound and the formation of ulcers.
Localization of the disease in the head area
Hemangioma on the baby’s head at the initial time may not be visually detected at all, and after a while it may appear. This is due to the fact that it has a small size, and in the process of growth of the child grows itself. In this case, if this tumor has been confirmed, then it is necessary to immediately begin treatment.
But you can also completely get rid of this aesthetic disadvantage with the help of liquid nitrogen. Doctors offer medical treatment for this condition of the skin on the head. The doctor prescribes regular examinations if the child has hemangioma with the presence of blood vessels in the structure.
In any case, if you have identified signs of hemangioma in your child, then examine it with a doctor. This tumor is not dangerous and is aesthetic in nature. When using certain rules for treatment, it can pass without a trace. Complications of the presence of hemangiomas on the head are almost not detected.
Localization of the disease in the spine
Many are interested in what it is - spinal hemangioma in adults. This is not a malignant tumor. The development of education occurs in the body of the vertebra. With this tumor, excessive growth of blood vessels is observed in the medulla.
Causes
A large role is played by genetic predisposition. The main reasons may be:
- local tissue oxygen starvation;
- overabundance of estrogen.
For the second reason, it is clear that hemangioma is more common in women. Symptoms of a tumor are absent. Sometimes pain can be felt, but usually it does not manifest itself throughout life. Pain appears only with a large tumor.
There are several types of treatment for spinal hemangiomas. Used to monitor tumor growth using MRI or complete removal of bones and joints. The way the tumor will be treated is chosen by the doctor, depending on the progression of the formation.
When a pathology is detected, patients should be examined frequently to understand the danger of hemangioma. Examination will help to identify compression of one or more vertebrae. Also, the method of treatment depends on the size and location of the tumor. A popular technique is radiation therapy. With this method, strong x-ray radiation is used, as a result of which the tumor particles are destroyed.
Hemangioma of the kidney
Kidney hemangioma is a benign organ tumor. This disease is very rare. Hemangioma of the kidney has the appearance of blood vessels that grow in the structure of the organ.
This condition of the kidney is of different types:
- Racemose. With it, blood vessels thicken, serpentine expand and intertwine, often forming vascular cavities. This species is an abnormality of vascular development. Most often found in children.
- Cavernous. It is formed by vascular cavities - cavities that communicate with each other with anastomoses. But it is worth remembering that the hemangioma of the kidneys can malign, that is, go into the form of a malignant tumor. At the same time, its properties will change. The mechanism of this formation begins at the moment of formation of the placenta, when the fetus receives cells of the organs of the mother. The immature fetal immune system responds to these cells by producing a series of antibodies that can affect the fetal kidneys. The causes of this tumor in adults are not fully understood, but experts suggest that this is a genetic predisposition or autoimmune disease of the body.
Liver hemangioma
If the size of the hemangioma is relatively small and fit within 5-6 cm, then most often the symptomatology does not manifest itself. With age, the tumor becomes larger and makes itself felt. There are discomfort and pain in the intestine and stomach. Dull but piercing pain over time becomes unbearable. If the disease is not detected on time, then the risk of hemangioma may consist in rupture of the tumor and internal bleeding.
Diagnostics
The most popular way to diagnose a disease is to do an ultrasound scan. If the results indicate liver hemangioma, then magnetic resonance imaging should be taken, it will give a complete and informative picture of the disease. After an ultrasound of the hemangioma, the doctor can almost accurately determine the correct treatment.
Treatment
If detected at the initial stage, no treatment for hemangiomas is prescribed. In more severe forms, hormonal therapy with the use of strong medications is prescribed. They should be used only as prescribed by the doctor and after passing the necessary tests. In the case of the rapid development of the disease and the achievement of a dangerous hemangioma, it must be excised. The surgical method is used only in critical situations, when there is a danger of degeneration of the disease into oncological form.
What to do with hemangioma? Laser therapy
The laser method has been successfully used to remove hemangiomas. Before starting treatment, the patient undergoes a consultation without fail. According to its results, equipment parameters are set, the schedule and duration of treatment are determined. The laser removal method has a number of advantages.
The procedure is absolutely painless. With a strong air flow, the skin area is cooled. In this case, slight discomfort creates a slight burning sensation. The most tender patients tolerate it without tension.
High speed operation. It takes several minutes to process one site. The client does not even have time to mentally tune into the procedure, as it already ends. The highest efficiency is achieved with the use of special modern laser systems.
This method is most applicable for the treatment of defects associated with blood vessels. As a rule, one procedure is enough when treating a small area. The accuracy and selectivity of the laser allows you to avoid damage to the surface of the skin. This eliminates the appearance of burns or scars. In the course of treatment, the plan is adjusted in connection with the results achieved.
Laser therapy is the most common and relevant option in our time, and all because the procedure is painless, since lasers have a cold skin protection system, which means that anesthesia is not needed. Suitable for both adults and children. The laser, heating the hemangioma, causes the vessels to stick together, the formation resolves, without traces on the skin. The procedure does not go in one step, usually in 4-6 weeks. This method is very convenient due to the ability to remove large hemangiomas. Any place is accessible to the laser, such as the eyelids.
Treatment with Propranolol
It is proved that if hemangioma is treated in children up to 5 months old, then in 80% of cases it can completely disappear without surgery. Now they are already organizing centers that are engaged in this. This is a real advance in medicine. The treatment system is the same, only the drug blocks the vessels. And the tumor subsides, it ceases to be saturated with blood, and the vessels just disappear. This method is not so convenient, because consequences remain, for example, swelling.
Hemangioma freezing with cryodestruction
This method is used in cases where hemangioma cannot be reached by other methods. It is carried out without the use of painkillers.
Liquid nitrogen is applied. In the process, due to the low temperature, the cells of the hemangioma die, but there remains a small bubble that cannot be pierced, it will heal itself. In some cases, use an ointment for a speedy effect. The downside of this treatment is a speck that remains. At first it will be a pink hue, and then almost imperceptible.
Hormone therapy
It is carried out using the drug "Prednisolone". It is used in rare cases when a child’s location of the hemangioma affects vital organs: respiration, vision. This treatment option is designed for auxiliary use.
Surgical intervention
An extremely dangerous method of treating hemangiomas, because if the surface of this “glomerulus” is damaged, then there is a risk of bleeding.
This is especially dangerous in such places:
- neck;
- in the chest area;
- the area of ​​the belt and abdomen;
- where there may be a belt injury.
The right doses
A very ancient method of treatment, since radiation doses seriously affect not only hemangiomas, but also the functions of the human body as a whole. However, there are places where hemangiomas are located, which cannot be dispensed with in other ways. For example, an eye socket.
Effects
Dangerous consequences for hemangioma:
- penetration into the structure of the skin, the spread and destruction of nearby organs;
- destruction at the site of hemangioma formation of the components of the body, for example muscles, bones, spine;
- the occurrence of a destructive effect on the back of the brain;
- devastating effects on internal organs such as the liver, kidneys and spleen;
- additional accession of infection;
- in place of hemangioma, the formation of precancerous structures;
- the occurrence of inferiority of platelets and anemia;
- cosmetic disorders such as scars, scars, and so on.
Tips for parents of a newborn
In each case, the hemangioma in the newly born requires special attention. Education is photographed, simply measured, outlined on parchment or cellophane month after month in order to later compare and understand whether an increase has occurred. It is necessary to take into account the fact that the baby is also growing. If the tumor grows according to the growth of the child, then this is simply tissue growth. If it has become larger at times, then this is the growth of the tumor itself.
It is very important to understand how not to harm, not cause cell growth. How could this happen? It is not recommended to grind this area, due to the fact that during massage, blood flow increases, and the formation is able to grow. Hemangioma should be protected from mechanical and chemical damage. In areas where this happens, it is recommended that education be removed as soon as possible. Because the trauma of each benign tumor leads to its malignancy, that is, malignancy.
Hemangiomas, like any other benign or malignant tumors, cannot be exposed to prolonged sun exposure, due to the fact that they, like moles, increase in the sun. As a rule, if a child’s tumor grows according to the body, does not interfere with organs, is not injured, then it is not removed. By the age of 6 or 7, they often completely disappear.