[Comprehensive therapy of symptomatic vertebral haemangiomas]

Vertebral haemangiomas (VH) are usually asymptomatic and are often found incidentally at spinal examination by imaging methods. Nevertheless, some haemangiomas can be clinically manifested by various degrees of axial pain and neurological deficit. The aim of this report is to show that this is a complex issue that requires a comprehensive approach to its treatment. The author reports on three patients with aggressive forms of cervical and lumbar VH treated by radiation therapy or vertebroplasty and hemilaminectomy with resection of the intraspinal thoratic component of a tumour. He discusses his findings in relation to the scarce data found on this topic in the literature.