Nonpalpable intramuscular hemangioma treated with hookwire localization and excision.

BACKGROUND: The local recurrence rate after surgical excision of intramuscular hemangioma reported is between 18% and 61%. The aim of this study was to review the clinical outcome and local recurrence rate after surgical excision of nonpalpable intramuscular hemangioma using preoperative ultrasound-guided hookwire localization.

METHODS: We performed ultrasound-guided hookwire localization before excision surgery for nonpalpable intramuscular hemangioma in 37 cases between January 1997 and 2011. There were 20 females and 17 males, with a mean age of 30.2 years (range, 17-49 years). The mean localization procedure time was 10.6 minutes (range, 3-20 minutes).

RESULTS: The average operation time was 48.6 minutes (range, 30-80 minutes). The average length of the excision wound was 5 cm (range, 4-11 cm), and the average hospital stay was 2.5 days (range, 2-4 days). The postoperative therapeutic report confirmed the diagnosis of intramuscular hemangioma. The average tumor size was 2.11 cm and all excision margins were free in all specimens. After the mean follow-up of 92.9 months (range, 14-179 months), one of the 37 patients had local recurrence (recurrence rate 2.7%).

CONCLUSION: The use of ultrasound-guided hookwire localization before excision surgery is safe and effective in treating nonpalpable intramuscular hemangioma and could provide a better cosmetic result and functional recovery.