Isolated paramedullary hemangioblastoma originating from the first cervical nerve root: case report

Novel Clinical Insights into Spinal Hemangioblastoma in Adults: A Systematic Review

BACKGROUND

Hemangioblastomas (HBs) are well-vascularized, benign central nervous system tumors and the third most common primary spinal cord tumor after astrocytoma/ependymoma, occurring sporadically or as a part of autosomal dominant von Hippel-Lindau disease, in which tumors are often multiple and prone to relapse. Spinal HBs are commonly located in the cervical cord and associated with a syrinx formation. Owing to location and growth trends, they may cause significant neurological deficit, impairing quality of life. We conducted a systematic review to understand better clinical insights into spinal HB in adults and compare spinal HB versus posterior cranial fossa HB.

METHODS

Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines for conducting systematic reviews, we reviewed the English-language literature on adult spinal HB in the MEDLINE/PubMed database over the last 40 years.

RESULTS

We reviewed 237 articles on adult spinal HB and analyzed national and continental distribution, clinical symptoms, tumor location and presence of syringomyelia, treatment strategies and postoperative complications, histology and immunochemistry, and treatment outcomes. We compared individual characteristics in sporadic and von Hippel-Lindau disease spinal HBs. Finally, we compared features of posterior cranial fossa and spinal HBs.

CONCLUSIONS

Spinal cord HBs most commonly have a dorsal intramedullary location. Total surgical tumor resection is the first treatment option; preoperative embolization may be performed to reduce intraoperative bleeding and surgical time. HBs located in the spine have decreased mortality and rate of infection, but increased rates of cardiopulmonary complications compared with HBs in the posterior cranial fossa.

Primary Intradural Extramedullary Sporadic Spinal Hemangioblastomas: Case Report and Systematic Review

BACKGROUND

Hemangioblastomas are benign vascular neoplasms of the central nervous system that may occur sporadically or in association with Von Hippel-Lindau disease. A minority of these lesions can occur in the spine, mostly as intramedullary masses. The authors present a rare case of primary sporadic spinal hemangioblastoma occurring as an intradural extramedullary (IDEM) lesion. Diagnostic workup and surgical management of the patient are described.

METHODS

A systematic MEDLINE search was conducted using the keywords "hemangioblastoma" and "intradural extramedullary," "extramedullary," or "cauda equina." Clinicopathological characteristics and outcomes of the present case were reviewed and compared with those in the literature.

RESULTS

A 72-year-old man was found to have an IDEM lesion in his cervical spine after presenting with neck and shoulder pain. Gross total resection was successfully performed with sacrifice of an involved dorsal nerve rootlet. Screening for Von Hippel-Lindau was negative. Thirty-three additional patients with sporadic IDEM hemangioblastomas are reported in the literature. There was a slight male preponderance (54%) with a median age of 52 years. Patients presented with pain (54%), radiculopathy (33%), or myelopathy (32%). The majority of lesions were located in the lumbosacral spine (56%). All patients underwent maximal safe resection with stable or improved clinical status.

CONCLUSION

Primary IDEM hemangioblastomas are a rare entity. Differential diagnosis includes other IDEM lesions, such as schwannomas, meningiomas, or some vascular malformations. Resection of these sporadic tumors can be safely performed and result in improvement of neurologic deficits associated with mass effect from the tumor with low likelihood of recurrence.

Extraneuraxial Hemangioblastoma: Clinicopathologic Features and Review of the Literature

Extraneuraxial hemangioblastoma occurs in nervous paraneuraxial structures, somatic tissues, and visceral organs, as part of von Hippel-Lindau disease (VHLD) or in sporadic cases. The VHL gene plausibly plays a key role in the initiation and tumorigenesis of both central nervous system and extraneuraxial hemangioblastoma, therefore, the underlying molecular and genetic mechanisms of the tumor growth are initially reviewed. The clinical criteria for the diagnosis of VHLD are summarized, with emphasis on the distinction of sporadic hemangioblastoma from the form fruste of VHLD (eg, hemangioblastoma-only VHLD). The world literature on the topic of extraneuraxial hemangioblastomas has been comprehensively reviewed with ∼200 cases reported to date: up to 140 paraneuraxial, mostly of proximal spinal nerve roots, and 65 peripheral, 15 of soft tissue, 6 peripheral nerve, 5 bone, and 39 of internal viscera, including 26 renal and 13 nonrenal. A handful of possible yet uncertain cases from older literature are not included in this review. The clinicopathologic features of extraneuraxial hemangioblastoma are selectively presented by anatomic site of origin, and the differential diagnosis is emphasized in these subsets. Reference is made also to 10 of the authors' personal cases of extraneuraxial hemangioblastomas, which include 4 paraneuraxial and 6 peripheral (2 soft tissue hemangioblastoma and 4 renal).

[Hemangioblastoma of the right L4 nerve root with radicular extraforaminal involvement]

Hemangioblastomas are benign hypervascular tumours, which are frequently located at the posterior fossa or the spinal cord. Nerve root hemangioblastomas account for less than 2% of total cases. Sometimes the initial diagnosis can be inaccurate and the final diagnosis is not reached until the surgical procedure is performed. Given the high vascularisation of this particular kind of tumour, preoperative embolisation of the tumour is recommended to reduce surgical bleeding and minimise the risk of injuries to motor nerve roots. In this particular case, the patient presented with radicular pain in the right L4 nerve root territory originated by a radicular extraforaminal hemangioblastoma. After tumour devascularization and under neurophysiological control, total excision of lesion was achieved without posterior neurological deficit.

Intra-extradural dumbbell-shaped hemangioblastoma manifesting as subarachnoid hemorrhage in the cauda equina

A 56-year-old man presented with a rare intra-extradural dumbbell-shaped hemangioblastoma in the lumbar spine associated with von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease manifesting as subarachnoid hemorrhage. The tumor, which was exiting at the right L2-3 intervertebral foramen, was removed successfully by total facetectomy and posterior spinal fusion at the L2-3 segment. Nine years later, a recurrent tumor due to VHL was also totally removed with minimal neurological complications. Accurate diagnosis of this vascular-rich lesion is essential for developing an adequate surgical strategy. The dumbbell-shaped tumor requires total facetectomy and spinal reconstruction, and care should be taken to preserve the entire nerve root origin by only identifying the affected nerve fascicles at the origin, if possible. Postoperative adhesion must be minimized for second surgery in patients with genetic disease such as VHL, who are likely to suffer recurrence.

Typical magnetic resonance features of a haemangioblastoma, an uncommon nerve root lesion: case report and literature review

Haemangioblastomas are uncommon tumours of the central nervous system. Nerve root haemangioblastomas with both intradural and extradural components are extremely rare. We present a case of a C2 nerve root haemangioblastoma in a 64-year-old man where the preoperative diagnosis was a spinal meningioma. An unexpectedly vascular tumour was found at initial procedure. Urgent catheter angiography was performed and the tumour was embolized prior to complete excision at a subsequent procedure.