Treatment guidelines of lymphatic malformations of the head and neck

Lymphatic malformations, traditionally called lymphangiomas, are diseases caused by development errors of the lymphatic system. About 90% of the cases occur within 2years of age, except a few cases which occur in adulthood, and approximately 75% of the lesions are located in the head and neck region. The lesions can grow rapidly with infection, trauma or bleeding, resulting in disfigurement as well as severe impairment of respiration, swallow and speech. Although lymphatic malformations are benign lesions, they rarely resolve spontaneously, their infiltrating nature coupled with the difficulty in distinguishing involved vital structures of head and neck from adjacent normal tissues makes complete surgical resection even more difficult. The likelihood of postsurgical recurrence and complications is thus higher than other vascular lesions. Surgical resection, sclerotherapy and laser therapy are currently the main treatment modes of lymphatic malformations. Various treatment options have their advantages and disadvantages, the selection of treatment modalities should depend on the patient's individual status and available technology and expertise. The treatment protocol should be individualized, comprehensive as well as sequential in order to obtain the best treatment outcome. Based on published literatures and clinical experiences, we devised the treatment guideline for management of head and neck lymphatic malformations. This protocol will be reviewed and updated periodically to include cutting edge knowledge to provide the best treatment options to benefit our patients.