Clear Cell Change in Reactive Angiogenesis: A Potential Diagnostic Pitfall.

Reactive angiogenesis is commonplace, occurs in many circumstances, and is important in the repair of injured tissue. Histologically, it is characterized by newly formed capillaries arranged in a lobular architecture and lined by plump endothelial cells. We have encountered a form of reactive angiogenesis not well described; composed of large endothelial cells with abundant clear cytoplasm that causes diagnostic challenges. The cohort includes 10 patients, aged 4 to 61, mean 40 years; 7 males, 3 females. One case involved bone (ilium), and 9 involved soft tissue: fingers (n=2), toes (n=2), hip joint (n=1), shoulder (n=1), thigh (n=2), and anal mucosa (n=1). Clinically, the patients had chronic ulcers, osteomyelitis, or localized infection. All cases exhibited a lobular proliferation of capillaries lined by large polyhedral endothelial cells that obscured the vessel lumens and were admixed with acute and chronic inflammation. The endothelial nuclei were vesicular with small nucleoli and the cytoplasm was abundant and clear or palely eosinophilic. The endothelial cells were stained with CD31 and ERG (7/7 cases), CD34 (6/6), FLI1 (4/4), and were negative for keratin and CD68 (6/6). Periodic acid-Schiff stain and periodic acid-Schiff stain-diastase on 3 cases did not demonstrate glycogen. Using a polymerase chain reaction, no Bartonella henselae was found in all 6 cases tested. Reactive angiogenesis with clear cell change unassociated with Bartonella spp. has not been described. It causes diagnostic challenges and the differential diagnosis includes benign and malignant tumors, as well as unusual infections. It is important to distinguish between these possibilities because of the significant impact on treatment and prognosis.

Diffuse dermal angiomatosis associated with calciphylaxis: A 5-year retrospective institutional review.

BACKGROUND: Although diffuse dermal angiomatosis (DDA), a rare acquired reactive cutaneous vascular disorder, has been previously reported in association with calciphylaxis (CP), the clinical significance of this relationship has not yet been elucidated. METHODS: A total of 24 cases of CP diagnosed from 2013 to 2018 were retrospectively reviewed for the presence of associated DDA. Pertinent clinical information for each patient was also collected, and statistical analysis was performed using multivariable logistic regression, Student t test and Fisher exact test. RESULTS: African American race and comorbid congestive heart failure were the only variables that demonstrated independent, statistically significant association with the presence of DDA. End-stage renal failure, diabetes mellitus, immunosuppressive and hypercoagulable states, arrhythmia, body mass index, hypertension, coronary artery disease, patient age, duration of CP symptoms, gender, time interval from biopsy to death, anticoagulation therapy and sodium thiosulfate administration at the time of biopsy did not demonstrate a statistically significant association with DDA. CONCLUSION: DDA does not appear to be associated with disease severity or prognosis in cases of CP; however, in our population CP with concurrent DDA was more prevalent in African Americans and individuals with congestive heart failure.

Prurigiform Angiomatosis: Reactive Angioproliferation in the Skin and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors.

BACKGROUND: Cutaneous benign angioproliferations can be diagnostically challenging and may mimic vascular tumors. Keratinocytes express vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGFs). We studied the angiogenic factor expression pattern in cutaneous lesions with a distinctive pattern of remarkable dermal angiomatosis underlying prurigo-like epidermal changes. METHODS: Cases were selected retrospectively from 2012 to 2018, and their VEGF staining pattern was compared with normal skin and other reactive skin conditions. RESULTS: Thirty-eight patients, median age 76 years, mostly men (74%), presented with asymptomatic patches or plaques, most commonly located on the buttocks (n = 17) and/or intergluteal fold (n = 12), often eliciting concern for neoplasia (n = 19). Microscopically, all cases featured a prominent proliferation of dilated capillaries and postcapillary venules, underneath epidermal changes resembling prurigo or lichen simplex chronicus. In one-third, a subepidermal lymphocytic infiltrate was present. Immunostaining with VEGF was positive in the upper 4/5 of the epidermis overlying the angioproliferation, in contrast with nonlesional skin, where VEGF positivity was limited to the stratum granulosum. Receptor VEGFR-2 was expressed in the endothelia of neovessels. CONCLUSIONS: We propose the term prurigiform angiomatosis for the morphological picture of prurigo/lichen simplex chronicus-like epidermal hyperplasia with prominent dermal angioproliferation. Mechanical injury and inflammation are the likely triggers of this reactive angiogenesis pattern, driven by epidermal VEGF expression.

Granular cell cutaneous epithelioid angiomatous nodule.

Cutaneous epithelioid angiomatous nodule is an uncommon vascular lesion usually described as composed of epithelioid endothelial cells with vesicular nuclei and eosinophilic cytoplasm. A granular cell variant has not been previously described. Endothelial cells can present with granular cytoplasm as documented with reports of granular cell angiosarcoma. The granularity is thought to be due to increased intracytoplasmic lysosomes. We present a case of a benign superficial vascular lesion composed of a sheet-like proliferation of epithelioid endothelial cells with distinctly granular cytoplasm confirmed as of endothelial origin with positive staining for CD31 and ERG.

Angiomatosis of the breast: a clinicopathological and immunophenotypical characterisation of seven cases.

AIMS: Mammary angiomatosis is a rare, benign vascular lesion that morphologically mimics low-grade angiosarcoma (LGAS). To date, only occasional reports of this entity have been published, none of which included analysis by immunohistochemistry. The purpose of this study was to further characterise mammary angiomatosis by clinical, histological, and immunohistochemical means while emphasising distinguishing features from LGAS. METHODS: Seven cases of primary mammary angiomatosis were evaluated. For one patient, a subsequent recurrence was also evaluated. RESULTS: All patients were female with a median age at presentation of 51 years (range: 19-58 years). The most common clinical presentation was that of a palpable abnormality or mass (5/8) and the median primary tumour size was 3.1 cm (range: 2-9 cm). Of the six patients with follow-up, one developed a recurrence 6 years after initial presentation. Histologically, all cases were composed of variably sized ectatic, thin-walled vessels lined by flat normochromic endothelium diffusely infiltrating mammary stroma. Where present, lesional vessels infiltrated between and around terminal duct lobular units but not into individual intralobular stroma. Most cases (6/8) showed a combination of lymphatic-appearing and haemangiomatous-appearing vessels. Lymphatic-appearing vessels were D2-40 positive in all but one case. D2-40 was negative or weak in haemangiomatous-appearing vessels. All lesional vessels were CD31 positive. Ki-67 indices were <1% in all but one case (5%). CONCLUSIONS: Mammary angiomatosis is a rare vascular lesion that shares clinical, morphological and immunohistochemical features with LGAS; however, certain key traits make the distinction possible.

[Meningioangiomatosis: a clinicopathological study of five cases].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinicopathologic characteristics of meningioangiomatosis (MA). METHODS: Five cases of MA were evaluated morphologically by HE and immunohistochemistry on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue. Clinical information was also obtained. The literature was reviewed. The clinical pathology and biological behavior of MA were discussed. RESULTS: Five cases of MA were reported, arising in three males and two females, with an age range of 16 to 26 years at diagnosis. All five subjects had intractable seizure disorders, and the duration of illness ranged from 8 months to 18 years. The lesions were resected from the frontal lobe in four patients, and from the temporal lobe in one. All the lesions were confined to the cortex, firm in consistency, without capsules and had poor blood supply. There was focal involvement of the overlying leptomeninges. Microscopically, they showed characteristic features of MA, such as proliferating microvessels with perivascular cuffs of spindle-cell within the cortex. Some had numerous calcifications, others showed acidophilic granular bodies. The cells were positive for EMA and vimentin by immunohistochemistry, and for reticulin by histochemical staining. CONCLUSIONS: MA is a rare, benign hamartomatous lesion of the central nervous system. It usually presents as plaque-like or nodular mass in the cerebral cortex and the overlying leptomeninges, consisting of meningovascular proliferation and leptomeningeal calcification. In some cases the lesion may show perivascular proliferation of elongated spindle-shaped cells. MA usually affects children and young adults, and is located in the frontal or temporal lobes with variable involvement of the overlying leptomeninges. Clinically, most of sporadic cases have a long history of intractable seizures despite multiantiepileptic drugs. MA has also been reported to coexist with arteriovenous malformations,meningiomas and other tumorous lesions.

A case of tumor-forming pseudoangiomatous stromal hyperplasia of the breast.

Pseudoangiomatous stromal hyperplasia (PASH), characterized by the presence of slit-like spaces embedded in a hyalinized stroma, is sometimes observed during pathologic examination of breast-tissue specimens. Because tumor-forming PASH is rare, we report a case of a 41-year-old woman admitted to our hospital with a tumor in her left breast. Ultrasonography and aspiration biopsy cytology revealed a benign tumor. After performing Mammotome(®) biopsy, the lesion was diagnosed as PASH of the breast based on characteristic findings of histology and immunohistochemical studies. Because PASH tumors do not usually become malignant, we decided to perform ultrasonographic follow-up without tumor excision.

Pseudoangiomatous stromal hyperplasia (PASH) of the breast: a series of 24 patients.

Pseudoangiomatous stromal hyperplasia (PASH) is a benign mesenchymal proliferative lesion of the breast. In 2005, only 109 cases had been reported since its initial description in 1986 by Vuitch et al. Our 24 cases represent one of the largest series to be reported from a single institution. We retrospectively reviewed data from 2004 to 2010 of patients diagnosed with PASH by surgical excision or image-guided biopsy. All pathological specimens were reviewed by a single pathologist. The samples were stained for estrogen and progesterone receptors (ER and PR), CD34, and the lymphatic marker D2-40. All but one of 24 (96%) patients presented with breast masses either on imaging or clinically. Fourteen of the 24 patients (58%) were diagnosed on surgical excision, 10 (42%) diagnosed with core needle biopsy, and five (20%) were diagnosed using both techniques. The tumors ranged in size from 0.3 cm to 7.0 cm. All women except two were premenopausal or perimenopausal at diagnosis. Nineteen samples were available for hormonal receptor staining and of these 18 of 19 (95%) were ER or PR positive. PASH was diagnosed in two men, a transgender male on hormones and the other with gynecomastia. The patients' ages ranged from 18 to 86 years old. In addition to PASH other benign histopathological findings include stromal fibrosis and atypical ductal or lobular hyperplasia. Imaging revealed no distinguishing feature for PASH with benign histology. One patient had synchronous ductal carcinoma in-situ (DCIS). Patients were treated with local excision or observation. This study suggests that PASH is primarily a diagnosis of premenopausal and perimenopausal women. Our series supports a hormonal basis for its development due to the positive staining for hormonal receptors. Management is conservative surgery for larger masses with careful observation being an option in patients not at high risk for breast cancer.

Dermatoscopy of an angiomatoid spitz nevus.

To date, only 12 cases of angiomatoid Spitz nevus have been characterized in the literature. We present the first case of angiomatoid Spitz nevus in which dermatoscopic findings are described.

Angiogenic and inflammatory factor expressions in cutaneomeningospinal angiomatosis (Cobb's syndrome): case report.

We report on a case of cervical cutaneomeningospinal angiomatosis (Cobb's syndrome), a rare somatic disorder, characterized by vascular abnormalities of the spinal cord, with a triad of associated vascular skin, muscle, bone, and dura involvement at the same somite. This case follows an 18-year-old male patient presenting with left extremity weakness and back cervical pain. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a spinal cord arteriovenous malformation (AVM) at the C3-C5 level. Cobb's syndrome was diagnosed by coexistence of cutaneous naevi in a dermatomal pattern and neurological signs of a spinal cord lesion together with cervical MRI and angiography. The patient underwent a combination of staged endovascular embolization and microsurgical resection. Multiple biopsies of the mass including the skin, muscle, dura, and spinal cord at the same somite revealed that the lesions had a similar pathology. Post-operative immunohistochemical characterizations on specimen included CD31, smooth muscle actin (SMA), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP-9). The unique associations of somatic and spinal cord lesion as well as angiogenic and inflammatory factor expressions in all specimens are reported.

Imaging and spectroscopic findings in meningioangiomatosis.

Meningioangiomatosis (MA) is an uncommon brain tumor. The role of imaging techniques is underscored in cases where the tumor location makes resection (or even biopsy) dangerous. We report the case of a child with an MA tumor located deep in the right sylvian fissure. A computed tomography (CT) scan showed calcifications in a highly vascular lesion with surrounding edema. Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) showed a distinct choline (Cho) peak, which usually suggests a proliferating tumor. Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) showed the lesion lacked hypermetabolic features. These radiological features should put MA in the differential diagnosis.

Allelic loss on chromosomes 1p32, 9p21, 13q14, 16q22, 17p, and 22q12 in meningiomas associated with meningioangiomatosis and pure meningioangiomatosis.

Meningioangiomatosis (MA) is a rare lesion appearing sporadically or as a part of neurofibromatosis 2. The occurrences of meningiomas arising from MA (MA-M) have raised doubts about the traditional concept of a hamartomatous origin for MA. Cytogenetic or molecular studies on MA, with or without meningiomas, are limited because of the rarity of MA. The current study was to evaluate the loss of heterozygosity (LOH) in seven cases of MA-M and two cases of pure MA. LOH on six chromosomes (1p32, 9p21, 13q14, 16q22, 17p, and 22q12) were investigated using 13 sets of microsatellite markers, including D1S193, D1S463, D22S193, D22S929, D22S282, TP53, D17S796, D16S421, D16S512, D13S118, D13S153, D9S162, and D9S104. PCR was performed using each marker and polymorphic analysis was accomplished by silver staining. Immunohistochemical stain for Ki-67 was carried out and labeling index was measured by using a semiquantitative manual counting method. The meningioma portions of MA-Ms showed LOH for loci on chromosomes 22q12, 9p21, and 1p32 in 57.1% (4/7), 28.6% (2/7), and 28.6% (2/7) of cases, respectively. The MA portions of MA-M had a LOH for loci on 22q12 in 28.6% (2/7) of cases, whereas each pure MA harbored one LOH on either chromosome 22q12 or 9p21. The proliferation indices of MA-Ms were significantly higher in the meningioma than in the MA components. Our data suggest that both the meningioma and the MA undergo the same overlapping clonal process, with the MA-M while undergoing additional genetic alterations that confer a greater proliferative potential.

Clinicopathologic correlation of retinal angiomatous proliferation.

OBJECTIVES: To correlate clinical and histopathologic features of an eye with retinal angiomatous proliferation (RAP) secondary to age-related macular degeneration and to investigate the expression of von Willebrand factor (VWF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in this condition. METHODS: Histopathologic features from serial sections through the globe of an 87-year-old woman with RAP were studied and compared with fluorescein angiography and color fundus photographs obtained 4 months before death. Commercially available anti bodies were used to detect expression of VWF and VEGF in tissue sections. RESULTS: The pathologic correlate of RAP was a circumscribed intraretinal angiomatous complex within the outer part of the neurosensory retina overlying a large pigment epithelial detachment. There were no breaks in the Bruch membrane. No choroidal neovascularization was present. Endothelial cells within the RAP lesion immunostained positively for VWF and VEGF. The Bruch membrane expressed VWF adjacent to the RAP. CONCLUSIONS: Fundus examination and fluorescein angiography images of RAP in a patient with age-related macular degeneration correlated histopathologically with a neovascular intraretinal angiomatous complex, without the presence of sub-retinal pigment epithelial neovascularization. Immunostaining demonstrated that RAP expresses VWF and VEGF.

Epithelioid angiomatous nodule of the nasal cavity.

Epithelioid angiomatous nodule (EAN) is a recently described cutaneous vascular lesion with epithelioid features. We report two additional cases occurring in an unusual location in the nasal cavity. The patients were two young adults (17 and 26 years) presenting with recurrent unilateral epistaxis. Computerized tomography scan and endoscopy revealed small tumors that had developed in the nasal septum and the turbinate, measuring 1 and 1.5 cm, respectively. Endoscopic resection was performed. No recurrence was observed in the follow-up. Pathological examination revealed a well-limited but unencapsulated nodule composed of large epithelioid cells with round nuclei. Some tumor cells contained intracytoplasmic vacuoles. Mitotic activity was low without necrotic areas. Tumor cells were strongly immunostained with antibodies to CD34 and CD31. The main differential diagnosis is an epithelioid hemangioma sharing many morphologic features with EAN. We report these cases to inform of a possibly unusual location of EAN.

Is sclerosing angiomatoid nodular transformation (SANT) of the splenic red pulp identical to inflammatory pseudotumour? Report of 16 cases.

AIMS: To report 16 cases of sclerosing angiomatoid nodular transformation (SANT) of the splenic red pulp. METHODS AND RESULTS: Patients were selected in two phases. An initial group of seven patients was diagnosed with SANT based on the presence of angiomatoid nodules. Sheets of inflammatory fibrosis were found in three patients, resembling inflammatory pseudotumour (IPT); nine further cases of IPT were reviewed. Angiomatoid nodules were detected, leading to the diagnosis of SANT in all cases. The splenic mass (10-150 mm in diameter) was polycyclic, composed of multiple small nodules of loose connective tissue comprising myofibroblasts and a dense network of capillaries as well as some remnants of sinuses. Collagenous fibrosis surrounded them. Bands or large sheets of fibrosis, infiltrated by various inflammatory cells, particularly polytypic plasmacytes, resembling IPT, were present in 10 cases. CONCLUSIONS: SANT of the red pulp is a distinct benign pseudotumorous lesion of the spleen characterized by the presence of angiomatoid nodules. We observed such angiomatoid nodules in all our cases of splenic IPT, which were not follicular dendritic cell or myofibroblastic tumours. We therefore recommend careful examination for angiomatoid nodules in all suspected cases of splenic IPT.

Cerebral meningioangiomatosis in a CD-1 mouse: a case report and comparison with humans and dogs.

Meningioangiomatosis is a rare proliferative disorder of the central nervous system. Several cases have been described in humans, a few in dogs, one case in a cow and one in a horse; meningioangiomatosis has never been recorded in rodents. The pathogenesis of this condition remains obscure and it is uncertain whether it represents a neoplastic or malformative process. Meningioangiomatosis is usually characterized by a plaque-like leptomeningeal proliferation of mainly spindle-shaped cells and small blood vessels, extending along the Virchow-Robin spaces into the adjacent neural parenchyma. In this report, we presented a brain lesion displaying the histopathological key features of the meningioangiomatosis and involving the base of the cerebrum (fronto-basal area) and the brainstem, found in a male CD-1 mouse. The histopathological and immunohistochemical results are discussed, and compared with those previously reported in other cases of meningioangiomatosis.

Increased visual cortex glucose metabolism contralateral to angioma in children with Sturge-Weber syndrome.

Functional reorganization after focal brain injury can lead to altered cerebral metabolism of glucose. Sturge-Weber syndrome (SWS) with unilateral involvement is a clinical model for evaluating the effects of early focal brain injury on brain metabolism and function. In this study, 2-deoxy-2[(18)F]fluoro-D-glucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) was used to measure glucose metabolism in cortex and basal ganglia, both ipsilateral and contralateral to the angioma, in 17 children (eight males, nine females; age range 1y 8mo-10y 4mo; mean 5y 7mo [SD 2y 11mo]) with unilateral SWS and epilepsy. The PET findings were compared with those of a control group of 11 age-matched children (four males, seven females; age range 3y-10y 8mo; mean 6y [SD 2y 10mo]) with partial epilepsy but normal magnetic resonance imaging and PET scans. In the SWS group, visual and parietal cortex showed decreased glucose metabolism on the side of the angioma (p=0.001) but increased metabolism on the contralateral side (p=0.002). In particular, glucose metabolism was very high in contralateral visual cortex of childrenwith SWS, showing severe occipital hypometabolism on the side of the angioma. Eight children with visual field defect showed increased metabolism in the contralateral visual cortex (p=0.012). These findings indicate that early, severe unilateral cortical damage in SWS may induce increased glucose metabolism in the contralateral visual cortex, probably reflecting reorganization.

Sclerosing angiomatoid nodular transformation of the spleen.

Sclerosing angiomatoid nodular transformation (SANT) is a recently recognized nonneoplastic vascular lesion of the spleen with fewer than 30 cases described. Microscopically, SANT consists of multiple well-circumscribed vascular/angiomatoid nodules showing plump endothelial cell and extravasated erythrocytes. The nodules are surrounded by a variable lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate, spindle cells, and collagenous stroma. The vascular nodules display a complex mixture of endothelial phenotypes resembling splenic sinusoids (CD34-/CD31+/CD8+), capillaries (CD34+/ CD31+/CD8-), and small veins (CD34-/CD31+/CD8-). Focal expression of CD68 can also be seen. The differential diagnosis of SANT includes splenic hamartoma, inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor, littoral cell angioma, and hemangioendothelioma. It has been postulated that SANT represents a peculiar hamartomatous transformation of splenic red pulp in response to an exaggerated nonneoplastic stromal proliferation. SANT has a benign clinical course with splenectomy being curative.

[Sclerosing angiomatoid nodular transformation of spleen].

OBJECTIVE: To study the clinicopathologic features of sclerosing angiomatoid nodular transformation of spleen and its differential diagnosis. METHODS: The clinicopathologic characteristics and immunophenotype of 4 cases of sclerosing angiomatoid nodular transformation of spleen were studied. RESULTS: Histologically, all cases were characterized by multiple angiomatoid nodules of various sizes in a fibrosclerotic stroma. The nodules were round and sometimes convoluted. They were composed of slit-like, irregular-shaped or slightly dilated vascular spaces lined by plump endothelial cells and interspersed with a population of spindly or ovoid cells. Immunohistochemical study showed a heterogeneous staining pattern, with the lining cells of the small capillaries expressing CD34 and those of the sinusoid-like structures expressing CD8. CD31 highlighted both the lining cells and interspersed cells, resulting in a complex meshwork. The lining cells were also focally positive for CD68. Smooth muscle actin revealed conglomerates of spindly shaped cells around and between the vascular channels. These spindly shaped cells in the intervening stroma were focally positive for actin, but negative for desmin, CD21 and CD35. CONCLUSIONS: Sclerosing angiomatoid nodular transformation is a rarely encountered benign lesion of the spleen, which should be distinguished from other angiomatoid tumors and tumor-like lesions.