Intramedullary disseminated capillary hemangioma with localized spinal cord swelling: case report

A case of intramedullary disseminated capillary hemangioma in the cervical spinal cord is presented. The patient showed progressive neurological deficits. Magnetic resonance imaging showed localized swelling of the spinal cord. This case was initially misdiagnosed at another institution as syringomyelia. Decompression of the posterior fossa and a syringo-subarachnoid shunt operation were performed. However, the operative findings in the authors' institution showed edematous tissue with no apparent neoplastic characteristics. Pathological findings revealed angiomatous nests consisting of small capillary-like vessels, telangiectatic vessels, and aggregated venules scattered in the edematous and partially necrotic spinal cord tissue. The edema and necrosis of the cervical cord were considered to have been caused by circulatory disturbances in the spinal cord parenchyma resulting from these vascular lesions.