title: Delayed post-traumatic capillary haemangioma of the spine.
abstract: Capillary haemangiomas are well-circumscribed aggregates of closely packed, thin-walled capillaries separated by connective tissue stroma. In subcutaneous tissue they are termed pyogenic granuloma and commonly follow trauma. They rarely occur in the spine. We present a 43-year-old woman with a 6-week history of thoracic myelopathy and back pain on a background of T7 and T8 vertebral compression fractures from a motor vehicle accident 10 years previously. MRI demonstrated a posteriorly based extradural homogeneously enhancing mass at this level. The lesion was resected and diagnosed histopathologically as a capillary haemangioma. The patient's symptoms resolved and she made an uneventful recovery. The literature is reviewed and the possible pathogenesis is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Southern Health, 246 Clayton Road, Clayton 3168, Victoria, Australia. hamishshilton@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Hamish
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shilton
authors.forename: Tony
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Goldschlager
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kelman
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Xenos
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D050815:Fractures, Compression / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D018324:Hemangioma, Capillary / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D013125:Spinal Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D013904:Thoracic Vertebrae / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology