Preoperative embolisation of a vertebral haemangioma compressing the spinal cord

The authors report one case of dorsal haemangioma in an eleven year old boy who became paraparetic following slight trauma. Myelography revealed a complete block at the level of the angiomatous vertebra. - Selective medullary angiography gave complete visualization of the haemangioma and of its vascular peduncles which started from the right and left 9th inter costal arteries. After having visualized Adamkiewicz's artery, which started from Th<inf>7</inf> on the left, the angioma was embolised with sponge fragments. This made decompressive laminectomy much easier since it reduced the risk of profuse bleeding. The child was walking normally two months after operation. © 1974 Springer-Verlag.