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10 Year Old Child, Hemangioma In Left Shoulder, Muscle Indentation, Skin Discoloration. Causes For Tissue Damage?

Posted on Fri, 15 Jun 2012

Question: hi my daughter is 10 years old and was born with a hemangioma on her left shoulder today we noticed that near her hemangioma her muscle has seemed to cave in or has became really indented and her skin has become discolored it looks lighter in two spots she says her hurts sometimes it looks like her muscles are gone in that spot can you tell me what can be the cause of this or what we should do about this

Answered by Dr. Hema Yadav (47 minutes later)

Hello,

Thanks for posting your query.

Hemangiomas are usually benign when present since birth and some types may usually decrease or remain as it is.

But like any other mass if it shows rapid growth or increase in size or color change or involvement of neighbouring tissues like muscle or skin then it has to be examined by a doctor and tested to rule out malignancy or any atypical cells.

Though the chances are very less in such hemangiomas, I would advise you to consult a general surgeon who will diagnose and treat it appropriately. Even if the risk of malignancy is ruled out there are some hemangiomas which may require treatment to stop its involvement of neighbouring tissues like nerves and muscle.

So please consult a general surgeon or oncosurgeon in your locality as soon as feasible.

Hope I have answered your query. I'll be available for any follow up queries. Please accept my answer in case you do not have further queries.

Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad

Follow up: Dr. Hema Yadav (45 hours later)

i did take my daughter to the dr and a general surgeon saw her and they just said that the it was probably caused from the hemangioma no test or scans were done do you think we should get it further evaluated with an mri or some kind of scan to see how much damage was done to the tissue

Answered by Dr. Hema Yadav (3 hours later)

Hello,

Thanks for the follow up query.

If the doctor has examined her and found it to be a minor involvement and only superficial tethering of tissues, he might not have advised any investigations. With due respect to your doctor, I would just say that since your daughter also complains of pain sometimes in the same region, an MRI (Magnetic Resonant Imaging) scan of the soft tissues and shoulder would confirm the findings and relieve any doubts.

If it is very superficial an ultrasound won't be of much help, your doctor could decide which one to go ahead with. An MRI, according to me would be the more confirmatory of the two.

You can discuss it with your doctor, it is always better to comply with the doctors judgement and advice as only after thorough examination of the lesion he must have concluded it to be a minor involvement and not needing further investigation.

As a parent, sometimes one might worry over trivial problems of the child but a doctor would weigh the risk versus benefit of each action and try to give an impartial judgement.

So finally I would say that you discuss the matter again with your doctor and if you feel worried
or anxious just go ahead and request for the tests. Even if the results are normal you wil be
relieved of your stress.

Hope I have helped you in your dilemma. Please accept my answer in case you do not have further queries.

Regards

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Shanthi.E