Surgical Options for Aggressive Vertebral Hemangiomas：A case series, literature review and treatment recommendations

Direct epidural ethanol injection in aggressive vertebral hemangiomas to decompress the central canal: a multistep percutaneous treatment strategy

BACKGROUND

Vertebral hemangiomas are incidental and typically, asymptomatic lesions of the spine, present in 10-12% of the population. However, aggressive vertebral hemangiomas (AVHs) can compromise the spinal canal, leading to spinal cord or nerve root compression, and require timely treatment to prevent permanent neurological deficits. Surgical management is challenging owing to the high vascularity of AVHs, and carries a significant risk of perioperative blood loss. Intraosseous ethanol injection is commonly used for sclerotization, but may not adequately deal with epidural components.

OBJECTIVE

To carry out a staged treatment with an image-guided puncture and ethanol injection of the epidural component in 12 patients.

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed 12 patients with symptomatic AVHs who underwent targeted epidural ethanol injection followed by vertebral body cement augmentation, between 2017 and 2024, at three tertiary hospitals. Data collection included pre- and post-treatment imaging and clinical outcomes.

RESULTS

Among 12 patients (mean age 50, women 50%), all had extensive epidural involvement and were symptomatic, including spinal cord compression and pain. Reduction in size of more than 75% of the epidural hemangioma was achieved in 8 cases, with 11 patients experiencing complete symptom resolution. Laminectomy was performed in 3 cases, while corpectomy was avoided in all cases. Two patients had neurological worsening, with one achieving complete resolution and the other having mild residual impairment after rehabilitation due to a small spinal cord ischemic lesion. No other major complications occurred.

CONCLUSION

Direct epidural ethanol injection provides a minimally invasive alternative to surgery, such as corpectomy, including rapid size reduction of the compressive epidural component, and potentially, prevents retrograde flow into arterial collaterals. Adding vertebroplasty enhances vertebral stability.

Revision total en bloc spondylectomy for a recurrent aggressive vertebral haemangioma of the thoracic spine causing progressive thoracic myelopathy with segmental kyphosis

Vertebral haemangiomas are common amongst primary benign tumours of the spine, usually asymptomatic and discovered incidentally, whereby symptomatic cases are rare. Aggressive vertebral haemangiomas, occurring even less frequently, are characterized by their expansion, resulting in pain and neural compression symptoms. Depending on presentation and severity, several treatment options exist, and when causing progressive neurological deficit, surgical decompression and resection is warranted. Despite local recurrence being rare, regular follow-ups to detect recurrence are advised. In case of recurrent aggressive vertebral haemangiomas, however, subsequent treatment strategy usually depends on a case-by-case consideration, whereby reports in the literature are lacking. We describe a case of a recurrent aggressive vertebral haemangiomas of the thoracic spine in a 20-year-old male causing progressive thoracic myelopathy with segmental kyphosis, treated with a revision total en bloc spondylectomy and a multilevel fixation with vertebral column reconstruction using radiolucent instrumentation.