Intralesional bleomycin in lymphangioma: an effective and safe non-operative modality of treatment.
BACKGROUND
Lymphangiomas are benign hamartomatous lymphatic tumors. The mainstay of the therapy is surgical excision, but due to its infiltration along the nerves and muscles, total excision is not always possible. In the present study, we have evaluated the clinical profile of all the cases of lymphagiomas coming to our department and evaluated the efficacy of intralesional Bleomycin as a sclerosing agent in its management.


METHODS
In this prospective study, all patients were evaluated clinically and color Doppler ultrasonography (USG). The required dose was calculated as 0.5 mg/kg body weight, not exceeding 10 units at a time. The response was assessed clinically and on the basis of color Doppler USG.


RESULTS
Thirty-five patients of lymphangioma were included in the study. The neck region was the most common site of involvement. The response was excellent in 7 (20%), good in 26 (74.29%), and poor in 2 (5.71%) patients. The complications included fever, transient increase in size of swelling, local infection, intraluminal bleed, and skin discoloration in 10 patients.


CONCLUSIONS
This therapy may be used as primary modality instead of surgery in selected group of patients.
Department of Pediatric Surgery, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, 221005, Uttar Pradesh, India.
V
V
Kumar
P
P
Kumar
A
A
Pandey
D K
DK
Gupta
R C
RC
Shukla
S P
SP
Sharma
A N
AN
Gangopadhyay