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Prospective study of infantile hemangiomas: clinical characteristics predicting complications and treatment
Anita N Haggstrom1, Beth A Drolet, Eulalia Baselga
1Department of Dermatology, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA.
Insights
Infantile hemangiomas with large size, facial location, or segmental morphology are more likely to cause complications and require treatment. These factors predict poorer short-term outcomes in infants.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Dermatology
- Vascular Anomalies
- Infant Health
Background:
- Infantile hemangiomas are common benign tumors in infants.
- Predictors for complications and treatment needs are not well-established in large prospective studies.
Purpose of the Study:
- Identify clinical factors associated with infantile hemangioma complications.
- Determine characteristics linked to the need for therapeutic intervention.
Main Methods:
- Prospective cohort study of 1058 children under 12 with infantile hemangiomas.
- Data collected via standardized questionnaires on clinical characteristics, complications, and treatment.
- Study conducted across 7 US pediatric dermatology clinics.
Main Results:
- 24% of patients experienced hemangioma complications; 38% received treatment.
- Complications and treatment were more frequent in larger, facial, and segmental hemangiomas.
- Segmental hemangiomas showed significantly higher complication and treatment rates than localized ones.
Conclusions:
- Large size, facial location, and segmental morphology are key predictors of adverse short-term outcomes.
- These clinical features indicate a higher likelihood of complications and need for treatment.
- Understanding these predictors aids in managing infantile hemangiomas.
Objectives:
Infantile hemangiomas are the most common tumor of infancy. Risk factors for complications and need for treatment have not been studied previously in a large prospective study. This study aims to identify clinical characteristics associated with complications and the need for therapeutic intervention.
Patients And Methods:
We conducted a prospective cohort study at 7 US pediatric dermatology clinics with a consecutive sample of 1058 children, aged < or = 12 years, with infantile hemangiomas enrolled between September 2002 and October 2003. A standardized questionnaire was used to collect data on each patient and each hemangioma, including clinical characteristics, complications, and treatment.
Results:
Twenty-four percent of patients experienced complications related to their hemangioma(s), and 38% of our patients received some form of treatment during the study period. Hemangiomas that had complications and required treatment were larger and more likely to be located on the face. Segmental hemangiomas were 11 times more likely to experience complications and 8 times more likely to receive treatment than localized hemangiomas, even when controlled for size.
Conclusions:
Large size, facial location, and/or segmental morphology are the most important predictors of poor short-term outcomes as measured by complication and treatment rates.
