The challenge of treating vascular anomalies of the lips

ABSTRACT

Vascular lesions constitute the majority of the hamartomas presenting to us, and approximately 50 percent of these haemangiomas present in the head and neck region. The female to male incidence is approximately 2 to 1 and the capillary type haemangiomas are the most common, but in the most severe cases a mixture of capillary and cavernous types is found. Involvement of the face, particular the lips, carries greater psycho-social stigmata than involvement of other areas and early treatment is important to limit lesions at this site. In contrast to haemangiomas occurring in other anatomical sites, those found on the lips or in the perioral region are unlikely to involute spontaneously and often persist indefinitely. Early surgical management is indicated, despite the availability of other modalities of treatment such as steroid therapy, radiotherapy, sclerosing agents and laser therapy. 15 cases in which surgery was the mainstay of management are presented. In 6 cases, the initial management included steroid injections (triamcinolone 40mg/ml and 20mg/ml). The results of selected cases are shown and discussed.(AU)