An integrated multidisciplinary team approach to the management of vascular anomalies: challenges and benefits

Vascular anomalies comprise highly variable pathophysiology and commonly pose diagnostic and management dilemmas. Consequently, patients often benefit from input from multiple specialists. This study describes the inception of a multidisciplinary team (MDT) Vascular Anomaly Clinic (VAC) in a tertiary paediatric centre, and the subsequent experience managing this complex patient group.

This was a retrospective study of paediatric patients (< 18 years old) attending an MDT VAC from its inception in October 2012 until November 2019. Patient demographics, presentation, diagnosis and management were reviewed.

One hundred and thirty-three paediatric patients were seen over 7 years with a median age of 9.8 years. Vascular malformations were the most common diagnosis (88%), with venous malformations predominating (27%). The most common symptoms were pain (46%) and swelling (34%). Patients often required ≥ 2 investigations, with Doppler ultrasound (86%) and magnetic-resonance imaging (61%) being most common. Management included surgery (27%), sclerotherapy (26%), compression garments (23%), analgesia (12%), laser (15%), embolisation (5%) and sirolimus (3%).

The complex nature of vascular anomalies and high proportion of patients requiring multi-specialty management justified the establishment of an MDT VAC in our centre. Our experience demonstrates the success of an efficient one-stop MDT environment in the management of these challenging conditions.

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