Treatment of retinal hemangiomas with dye yellow laser

Retinal capillary hemangioma (angiomatosis retinae; von Hippel's disease) is a relatively uncommon vascular tumor. When seen in association with systemic angiomas, it is known as von Hippel-Lindau disease. Untreated, these tumors can cause numerous sight threatening sequelae, including exudative and tractional retinal detachment. Recently, the dye yellow laser has been demonstrated to be a safe and effective method of ablating retinal hemangiomas. This paper discusses the case of a retinal hemangioma that was successfully treated with the dye yellow laser. The current treatment modalities of retinal hemangiomas are reviewed, as well as recent literature on the tunable organic dye laser and its utilization in the treatment of retinal vascular disorders.