Congenital laryngeal hemangioma

Congenital subglottic hemangioma consistently occurs in a site below the vocal cord. It is a distinct clinical entity with typical clinical features. However, congenital hemangioma in other sites can cause airway obstruction. An anatomical classification is proposed on the basis of review of 23 consecutive cases. It is important to accurately identify the site and distribution of the lesion before commencing treatment. Radiation has been an acknowledged form of treatment, and in our hospital we have confirmed that radiation therapy, either by external beam, or by insertion of a radioactive gold grain, gives good results. The theoretical possibility of radiation-induced malignancy in the thyroid gland is reduced to an absolute minimum by use of a radioactive grain for localized tumor-dose with minimum radiation of surrounding tissue.