Cavernous hemangioma of the iris in an infant

Iris hemangioma is a rare intraocular tumor which can present with spontaneous hyphema. Juvenile xanthogranuloma, malignant melanoma with proliferation of vessels or hemorrhages in the region of cystic degeneration, and inflammatory granulomas are frequently confused with the true hemangiomas. Some authors have even questioned the very existence of iris hemangioma. Clinical case reports of iris hemangiomas with histopathologic evidence and clinical course after surgery are uncommon. We could not find any reports of iris vascular tumors confirmed using immunohistochemical staining with vascular markers. We report a case of a cavernous hemangioma of the iris in a 3-month-old infant treated surgically, and the histopathological findings and immunohistochemical analysis with vascular markers (factor VIII and CD34) are also shown.