Spinal extradural angiolipoma: report of two cases and review of the literature

Spinal angiolipomas are benign uncommon neoplasm composed of mature lipocytes admixed with abnormal blood vessels. They account for only 0.04–1.2% of all spinal tumors. We report two cases of lumbar extradural angiolipoma and review previously reported cases. We found 118 cases of spinal epidural angiolipoma (70 females and 48 males; age range 1.5–85 years, mean 44.03) spanning from 1890 to 2006. Prior to diagnosis 40.6% of the patients had weakness of the lower limbs. The interval between the initial symptoms and tumor diagnosis ranged from 1 day to 17 years (mean 20.2 months). Except for four cases diagnosed at autopsy, 109 patients underwent surgery and gross-total resection was performed in 79 cases (72.4%). Spinal angiolipomas are tumors containing angiomatous and lipomatous tissue, predominantly located in the mid-thoracic region. All angiolipomas show iso- or hyperintensity on T1-weighted images and hyperintensity on T2-weighted images and most lesions enhance with gadolinium administration. The treatment for spinal extradural angiolipomas is total surgical resection and no adjuvant therapy should be administered.

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title: Spinal angiolipomas. Report of three cases.
abstract: Spinal angiolipomas are distinct, benign lesions composed of mature lipocytes admixed with abnormal blood vessels. Three new cases of spinal angiolipoma are presented and 34 previously reported cases are analyzed. The 37 total cases (23 females and 14 males) ranged in age from 17 to 73 years (mean 43 years; median 45 years). The mean age of the female patients was older than that for the males (45.0 vs. 41.6 years; p < 0.001, Student's t-test) and most were peri- or postmenopausal. Prior to diagnosis, 97% of the patients had weakness of the lower extremities, 94% had sensory dysfunction, 84% had hyperreflexia and spasticity, 51% had sphincter dysfunction, and 41% had back pain lasting from 1 to 180 months (mean 28 months). Five (22%) of the 23 female patients were pregnant and two had exhibited significant weight gain coincident with the onset of symptoms. The angiolipomas were extradural in 35 patients and intramedullary in two; seven of the extradural lesions infiltrated the surrounding bone. The tumors extended from C-6 to L-4 and had a predilection for the midthoracic region (53% of cases). Plain radiographs were abnormal in 11 (39%) of 28 patients and in all patients with bone infiltration. Myelograms were abnormal in 97% of 32 patients and showed a complete block in 63% of patients. Computerized tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging revealed the fat-density lesions in all cases studied. There was vascular enhancement in three of five cases with contrast-infused CT and in the one case with gadolinium-infused MR imaging. All patients improved following resection of the epidural lesions and internal decompression of the intramedullary lesions. It is concluded that spinal angiolipomas predominantly affect women. They involve the thoracic (especially the midthoracic) region, and produce symptoms and signs of spinal compression and, in some cases, bone erosion and pathological fractures. Their symptomatology can be exacerbated by pregnancy and weight gain, suggesting that vascular engorgement and the presence of obesity influence their evolution. Their preponderance in older, peri-, or postmenopausal women, and their clinical exacerbation in pregnant women support a role for hormonal influence. Magnetic resonance imaging is the investigation of choice for the diagnosis of these lesions. Surgery is universally successful in relieving symptoms.

title: [Spinal extradural angiolipoma: a case report].
abstract: This 60-year-old man had been well until four years prior to admission, when he developed slowly progressive weakness of the lower extremities. On admission he was found to have a spastic paraparesis, sensory disturbance below the level of T10 and mild sphincter dysfunction. Conventional myelography and CT myelography demonstrated an epidural mass located from T5 to T8 vertebral level. MRI revealed that the epidural mass was fusiform and markedly enhanced by the contrast medium. Laminectomy was performed and a fibrous tumor red in color was subtotally removed. Histological findings were consistent with those of angiolipoma. Angiolipoma is a rare tumor in the central nervous system and is regarded as a clinical entity different from a spinal lipoma. Occurrence of angiolipoma in the central nervous system has been reported in 40 cases in the world literature. Thirty nine cases of them occurred in the spinal canal, especially in the dorsal epidural space of the thoracic region. The fusiform shape demonstrated in this case might also be characteristic of angiolipoma in this region.

title: Spinal extradural angiolipoma: a report of two cases and review of the literature.
abstract: Extradural angiolipomas are rare tumors that can produce spinal cord compression. Two patients with thoracic spinal angiolipoma are presented that were treated with surgical resection and radiation. The histological and clinical features of the 18 previously reported cases of these tumors are discussed.

title: Report of two cases and review of the literature
abstract: U Chondroblastoma is a benign cartilaginous neoplasm that generally affects the appendicular skeleton. Twenty-six cases of spinal chondroblastoma have been reported in the past 50 years, only six of which were located in the lumbar region. The authors report two cases involving this exceptional location. In both patients, low-back pain, in the absence of radicular pain, was the presenting symptom. In both cases, plain radiography and computerized tomography scanning revealed an osteolytic lesion surrounded by marginal sclerosis. Magnetic resonance imaging allowed the authors to study the tumor’s local extension. Examination of a percutaneous fluoroscopy-guided biopsy sample revealed the following typical histological features of chondroblastoma: chondroid tissue, focally alternating with cellular areas, and no nuclear atypia or pleomorphism. To reduce the risk of local recurrence, vertebrectomy and anterior‐posterior fusion were performed in both cases. In one case, a structural lumbar scoliosis was corrected during the posterior procedure. There was no postoperative complication. No recurrence was observed during the 3- to 6-year follow-up period. The surgery-related results were deemed successful. Although exceptional, the diagnosis of chondroblastoma is possible in lesions involving the lumbar spine. Other spinal locations are described in the literature, and frequency of recurrence is stressed. A vertebrectomy is advised to reduce the risk of local recurrence.

title: Dorsal thoracic cord compression from a spinal angiolipoma: case report and brief comment.
abstract: Angiolipomas are benign tumors usually found in the forearms of young adults. To the best of our knowledge only 63 cases of spinal angiolipomas have been reported in the literature up until 1999 (MEDLINE 1966-1999). We report a case of a spinal angiolipoma causing dorsal cord compression in a 44-year-old woman presenting with subacute lower limb paresthesias, in the absence of sensory or motor findings, which mimicked multiple sclerosis by history. Operative intervention was curative.

title: Epidural angiolipoma producing compression of the cauda equina.
abstract: Epidural angiolipomas are rare tumours and are histologically benign, but their myelographic and macroscopic appearance is malignant. Surgical results are satisfactory. A case is reported in a 48-year-old woman with a slowly progressive cauda equina compression syndrome in whom an epidural angiolipoma was successfully removed. The special feature of this case was a generalized severe spinal osteoporosis with a pathological fracture of a vertebral body at the level of the tumour.

title: Infiltrating Spinal Angiolipoma: A Case Report and Review of the Literature
abstract: Angiolipomas are rarely encountered in the spine. We report the case of a 47-year-old man with a thoracic angiolipoma involving the T9 vertebral body. A preoperative spinal angiogram confirmed a highly vascular neoplasm. The lesion was treated with endovascular embolization prior to a T9 corpectomy and resection of the epidural component of the tumor. At time of surgery, minimal blood loss occurred during resection of the vertebral body and the epidural mass. Pathologic examination demonstrated features consistent with spinal angiolipoma. This report emphasizes the clinical, radiographic, and pathologic features of infiltrating spinal angiolipoma and discusses therapeutic management options.

title: Spinal angiolipomas: MR features.
abstract: To determine the MR features of spinal angiolipomas and to compare these findings with their histologic appearance.



The MR examinations of three patients with surgically proved angiolipomas were reviewed for tumor location and extent, signal characteristics, and pattern of contrast enhancement, and were then compared with the histologic findings.



Four tumors were found in the three patients, all located in the posterior epidural compartment, averaging about 2.5 vertebral bodies in length. On noncontrast T1-weighted images, all lesions were inhomogeneous and hypointense relative to epidural fat. Inhomogeneous enhancement was seen in three lesions on postcontrast T1-weighted images obtained with fat-saturation techniques. Angiolipomas were least conspicuous on T2-weighted images. A high vascular content correlated with the presence of large hypointense regions on T1-weighted images.



Spinal angiolipomas are typically hyperintense on noncontrast T-1-weighted images relative to other tumors. Angiolipomas that contain large hypointense foci on noncontrast T1-weighted images can be expected to have a high degree of vascularity.

title: Spinal angiolipomas: report of a case and review of the cases published since the discovery of the tumour in 1890.
abstract: Angiolipomas of the spinal canal are extremely uncommon benign neoplasms composed of mature lipomatous and angiomatous elements. A case of thoracic spinal extradural angiolipoma producing progressive spinal cord compression in a 54-year old housewife is presented and 74 previously reported cases in the world literature over a period spanning nearly one century from 1890 to the present are analysed. The 75 total cases (46 females and 29 males) ranged in age from 6 to 73 years (mean 42.7, SD 15.9; median 43). The angiolipomas were located in the extradural compartment in 72 patients and intradural compartment in 3; 14 of the extradural lesions infiltrated the surrounding bone (infiltrating subgroup). Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed the fat-density lesions in all the cases that we studied. The findings indicate that spinal angiolipomas predominantly affect women. Their preponderance in peri- or postmenopausal women, and their fluctuating clinical course during the pregnancy support a role of hormonal influence on the development of the lesion. They often involve the thoracic region, and produce symptoms and signs of spinal compression and, in some cases, bone involvement. MRI is the investigation of choice for the diagnosis of these lesions. Non-infiltrating angiolipomas can usually be removed easily through a laminectomy, but infiltrating angiolipoma can be only partially resected. However, outcome is not worse in the infiltrating than in the non-infiltrating lesions and appears to be relatively independent of the completeness of the surgical removal. Subtotal resection usually provides substantial symptomatic relief, because these lesions are slow growing and do not undergo malignant transformation. The results of this review show that angiolipomas of the spinal canal have a good prognosis after surgical removal, even if infiltrating.

title: Spinal extradural angiolipoma: case report and literature review.
abstract: A case report of a 12-year-old child with a spinal extradural angiolipoma is presented. The tumor was totally removed and a good recovery was obtained. In a review of 43 previous cases, the clinical, radiological, and histological features of the tumor are discussed. It is stressed that spinal angiolipomas and spinal lipomas have to be considered as two different clinicopathological entities in order to ensure adequate treatment and prognosis.

title: Lumbar spinal angiolipomas: report of two cases and review of the literature
abstract: Case report and review of the literature. To describe two patients with angiolipoma in the ventral aspect of the lumbar epidural space, to discuss the clinical, radiologic, and surgical features of these lesions, and to review previously reported cases. Rome, Italy. Two cases, a 60-year-old man and a 54-year-old woman presented with lumbar–sciatic pain but with no abnormal neurological signs. Investigation (CT and MRI) demonstrated lumbar tumours. Laminectomy and excision of the tumors were performed, and symptoms improved immediately. Magnetic resonance imaging with suppression fat sequences allows the recognition of these lesions. The prognosis after surgical removal of spinal angiolipoma is favorable.

title: Spinal angiolipoma: case report and review of the literature
abstract: SummarySpinal angiolipomas are rare lesions usually found in the epidural space of the thoracic spine. This report presents a case of and reviews the literature on this rare entity. The etiology, clinical presentation, imaging, and treatment are discussed. In 92 reported cases of spinal angiolipoma 56 occurred in women (61%), and 36 in men (39%). Mean age of occurrence is 42.9 years (range 10 days–85 years) with most patients presenting with slowly progressive symptoms of spinal cord compression. Most cases occur in the extradural compartment, and are of the non-invasive subtype. This rare clinical entity must be considered in the differential diagnosis of spinal epidural lesions. In most cases complete removal is possible, however, prognosis is good even for infiltrating lesions. Thus, one must not risk neurological damage to attain complete resection.

title: Angiolipomas of the Central Nervous System
abstract: Angiolipomas are neoplasms composed of mature adipocytes admixed with abnormal vascular elements. They are most commonly found in the subcutaneous tissue of the trunk and extremities, but other sites have been reported. The craniospinal axis is an uncommon but significant site. An extensive review of the literature is conducted. We summarize 94 cases of angiolipomas in the central nervous system (CNS) in 92 patients, including five in our own series, to highlight the most prominent features of these tumors. The increasing number of cases of CNS angiolipoma in the era of magnetic resonance imaging raises the question of the rarity of these lesions.

title: Infiltrating extradural spinal angiolipoma.
abstract: Angiolipomas are considered to be rare. They are benign mesenchymal tumors generally located in the subcutaneous tissue of trunk and limbs.



The authors report a thoracic epidural angiolipoma mimicking a vertebro-epidural metastasis. The patient suffered from medullary compression related to an extradural mass in T6.



Pathological ex-, amination was obtained from tumoral samples. They consisted of mature adipose tissue with numerous sections of abnormal vascular channels.



Reviewing literature particular attention is paid to some questions raised in connection with different kinds of vertebro-epidural tumors. The authors give importance to relationships between angiolipomas and angiomyolipomas using MRI as a tool in differential diagnosis. Pathogenesis is evokated especially regarding the role of corticotherapy, the case herein reported lying within this therapeutical context.

title: Thoracic Spinal Angiomyolipoma With Extracanal Extension to the Thoracic Cavity: A Case Report
abstract: Case report and review of the literature.  To describe a 72‐year‐old man with thoracic spinal angiomyolipoma in the ventral aspect of the epidural space and extracanal extension to the posterior mediastinum, to discuss the clinical and radiologic features and unique biologic behavior of this entity, and to review of the literature on angiolipoma and angiomyolipoma.  Spinal angiolipoma and angiomyolipoma are rare tumors, which are localized almost exclusively in the dorsal epidural space of the thoracic spine. Most reported cases have no tendency to involve the surrounding tissue.  The authors describe the radiologic, surgical, and pathologic findings of this patient and review the findings from other reported cases.  Anterior decompression was performed using a right transthoracic incision, and the neurologic symptoms improved immediately. There were no signs of recurrence of the tumor or neurologic deficit within a 2‐year follow‐up period.  Results of a literature survey of these tumors support management by prompt and radical surgical intervention for long‐term cure, even in cases in which the infiltrating nature is recognized.

title: Spinal angiolipoma.
abstract: Spinal epidural angiolipoma is a rare cause of spinal cord compression. We present a case and review the clinical presentation, radiological appearance, pathological aspects and treatment of this distinct clinico-pathological entity.



A case of a 46-year-old woman with a five-month history of progressive myelopathy affecting her lower extremities is presented. CT and MRI revealed a large epidural fat-containing mass compressing the spinal cord dorsally at the T7-T8 level. A laminectomy was performed with gross total resection of the lesion.



The patient's neurologic symptoms improved postoperatively. A two-year follow-up period has revealed no signs of tumor recurrence and no neurological deficit.



The diagnosis of spinal angiolipoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of spinal cord compression. Magnetic resonance imaging is the investigation of choice. The surgical objective is complete excision but, for anterior lesions involving bone, an overly aggressive approach should be tempered by an awareness of the overall indolent natural history of so-called "infiltrating" spinal angiolipomas that are only partially excised.

title: Concurrent occurrence of solitary spinal epidural osteochondroma and angiolipoma.
abstract: A unique concurrent occurrence of spinal epidural osteochondroma and angiolipoma was found in the first thoracic level of a 21-year-old man. The combined lesions produced longstanding motor and sensory disturbances because of compression of the corresponding segment of the spinal cord, and abrupt paraparesis presumably due to spontaneous hemorrhage from the angiomatous component of the angiolipoma. The neurological deficits were satisfactorily improved after surgical removal of the hematoma as well as of both lesions which were regarded as mesenchymal hamartomas.

title: Spinal angiolipoma: case report and review of literature.
abstract: Spinal extradural angiolipomas are distinct, benign, and rare lesions composed of mature lipocytes admixed with abnormal blood vessels. They account for 0.14% of all spinal axis tumors. The case described here was a 72-year-old patient presenting with a history of paraparesis, hypoesthesia under the T2 level, hyperreflexia, and urinary overflow incontinence that appeared within 7 days after the administration of a coronary vasodilator drug regimen. The spinal magnetic resonance scan showed a lipomatous mass with signal void lesions, suggesting a vascular component of the tumor. The patient improved rapidly after surgical resection of the epidural tumor and decompression of the cord. According to the present literature, the duration of neurological symptoms ranges from 1 to 180 months (mean 28 months). But this patient's neurological deterioration took place 4 days before hospitalization. We believe that this can be explained by the increased tumor blood volume caused by vasodilator drugs, which in turn exerted a pulsatile compressive effect on the cord.

title: [Spinal extradural angiolipoma: a case report].
abstract: This 60-year-old man had been well until four years prior to admission, when he developed slowly progressive weakness of the lower extremities. On admission he was found to have a spastic paraparesis, sensory disturbance below the level of T10 and mild sphincter dysfunction. Conventional myelography and CT myelography demonstrated an epidural mass located from T5 to T8 vertebral level. MRI revealed that the epidural mass was fusiform and markedly enhanced by the contrast medium. Laminectomy was performed and a fibrous tumor red in color was subtotally removed. Histological findings were consistent with those of angiolipoma. Angiolipoma is a rare tumor in the central nervous system and is regarded as a clinical entity different from a spinal lipoma. Occurrence of angiolipoma in the central nervous system has been reported in 40 cases in the world literature. Thirty nine cases of them occurred in the spinal canal, especially in the dorsal epidural space of the thoracic region. The fusiform shape demonstrated in this case might also be characteristic of angiolipoma in this region.

title: Spinal epidural angiolipoma complicated by an intratumoral abscess. Case report.
abstract: Spinal angiolipomas are rare, benign lesions representing 0.14 to 1.2% of all spinal axis tumors. They most commonly involve the midthoracic spine and are located in the posterior epidural space. Up to now, six pediatric cases have been reported in the literature; two of them involved an acute clinical onset that was related to a venous infarction of a tumor. The authors report the case of a 16-year-old boy with a midthoracic epidural angiolipoma who was admitted with a clinical history of an acute paraparesis. In contrast to previous descriptions, the acute onset in this case was related to a spontaneous intratumoral abscess within the tumor.

title: Spinal intramedullary angiolipoma
abstract: We report the case of a young patient with a thoracolumbar (T11-L3) intramedullary angiolipoma. Total removal of the tumor was possible and after operation the patient's neurological condition greatly improved. Only two previous cases of intramedullary angiolipomas have been reported, and in neither could the lesion be wholly removed. The histopathological and radiological features of these tumors are discussed and the extreme rareness of this case is emphasized.

title: Radiological and histological findings in spinal intramedullary angiolipoma
abstract: We report an intramedullary angiolipoma with spinal cord compression studied by MRI, angiography and CT. Angiolipomas of the spine are rare benign tumours containing vascular and mature adipose elements. They are epidural in more than 90 % of the cases; only three cases of intramedullary angiolipoma are described. The clinical picture is nonspecific, but MRI and CT suggest the diagnosis.

title: Spinal angiolipomas: CT and MR aspects.
abstract: Spinal angiolipomas are rare benign tumors containing vascular and mature adipose elements. In greater than 90% of the cases they are located in the epidural space. The clinical symptomatology is nonspecific, but CT and particularly MR studies allow for a precise diagnosis. Computed tomography (four cases in the literature plus one explored in our department) showed a hypodense lesion in 80% of the cases. In one case the angiolipoma was isodense to the cord. Magnetic resonance (three cases in the literature plus two explored in our department) showed a more or less homogeneous mass with a signal in T1- and T2-weighted images close to that of the subcutaneous fat. The infusion of gadolinium (one case in the literature plus one of ours) is helpful as an indicator to the degree of vascularization of the angiolipoma.

title: Intracranial angiolipoma.
abstract: Fat containing tumours within the central nervous system are rare. The second reported case of intracranial angiolipoma is described.

title: INTRASPINAL LIPOMAS: REPORT OF CASES; REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE, AND CLINICAL AND PATHOLOGIC STUDY
abstract: Masses of adipose tissue within the cranium and within the spinal canal not associated with bifid spines are rare. Intracranial lipoma, reported cases of which numbered 74 up to 1936 (Sperling and Alpers1), rarely produces clinical symptoms because of its small size, and no reported tumor of this sort had been attacked surgically. Intraspinal lipoma is even less common, but it frequently grows to enormous size, produces compression of the spinal cord and is surgically exposed. When it is encountered, its true nature is unsuspected until the yellow mass is visualized or, when the tumor is reddish or white, until histologic examination is made. Elsberg's2series of data on 267 cases of extra-medullary tumors, compiled in 1941, included 6 instances of lipoma. It is probable, however, that the 2 tumors lying both intradurally and extradurally were associated with spina bifida, since Wolf,3in discussing what appears to

title: Revisited: spinal angiolipoma--three additional cases.
abstract: Angiolipomas are benign tumours which usually arise from subcutaneous tissue, particularly in the forearm, but they do occur rarely in the spinal canal. To the best of our knowledge 60 cases of histologically confirmed spinal angiolipoma have been reported in the medical literature. They show a female predominance (1.6:1), and the mean age at presentation is 43 years. They usually arise in the thoracic spine, most cases presenting with slowly progressive signs and symptoms of cord compression. Rarely, massive acute haemorrhage into the tumour may herald its presence. Surgical resection or decompression are the most satisfactory methods of treatment in most patients. We describe three further cases of spinal angiolipoma, and discuss their aetiology, pathogenesis, clinico-pathological features and surgical management.

title: Spinal extrathecal hemangiolipomas: report of two cases and review of the literature.
abstract: Two cases of a rare entity, spinal extrathecal hemangiolipoma, are presented. The clinical and histological features of the tumor are discussed, with particular attention to the uncommonly sudden onset of symptoms in one patient. Complete neurological recovery was exhibited by one patient after excision of the lesion, whereas only a partial recovery was achieved in the other case. The pathogenetic aspects of hemangiolipomas and the literature dealing with the previously reported 12 cases are reviewed.

title: Spinal angiolipoma mimicking extradural lipomatosis.
abstract: Spinal angiolipoma is a rare, benign tumour. More than 90% of cases arise extradurally. The authors report an extradural spinal angiolipoma in a 54-year-old man. Conventional T1-weighted and T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) demonstrated an excessive amount of extradural adipose tissue posteriorly, extending from the level of the third to the ninth thoracic vertebra. The signal intensity within the spinal cord was normal. These findings were initially misinterpreted as being of little clinical significance. When the patient's condition deteriorated, myelography was performed, and extradural compression of the thecal sac was demonstrated. At surgery spinal angiolipoma was confirmed. The ease with which the MRI features of this lesion can be overlooked, as well as imaging strategies to avoid this pitfall, are discussed.

title: Spinal cord compression by extradural fat after prolonged corticosteroid therapy.
abstract: This young man was operated on twice for thoracic spinal cord compression. He had been on corticosteroid therapy for the last 2 years subsequent to a renal transplant. The only anomaly discovered during the operation was a large quantity of extradural fat that did not present the characteristics of lipoma. The remarkable postoperative clinical improvement suggested that the fat deposit was responsible for the spinal cord compression.

title: Spinal stenosis caused by epidural lipomatosis in cushing's syndrome.
abstract: CENTRIPETAL fat deposition is a well known clinical feature of excessive endogenous or exogenous adrenal glucocorticoids. We describe an unusual case of central spinal stenosis caused by excessive epidural fat in a patient with Cushing's syndrome secondary to prolonged therapy with high doses of glucocorticoids. Only one other case report of this phenomenon could be located in the medical literature.1 Case Report A 53-year-old woman with Graves' disease, euthyroid after radioiodine therapy, had infiltrative ophthalmopathy with optic-nerve involvement. When she was treated with prednisone, 150 mg per day, cushingoid features developed rapidly. Two months after the initiation of therapy, with . . .

title: Two entities in angiolipoma(A study of 459 cases of lipoma with review of literature on infiltrating angiolipoma)
abstract: A study of lipomas collected over the past 20 years in a university hospital indicated that there are two types of angiolipoma, namely noninfiltrating and infiltrating. Noninfiltrating angiolipoma is seen in young individuals and presents as painful, soft, cutaneous nodules. Occasional compression of nerve fibers that accompany the vascular channels could be demonstrated. Treatment is merely enucleation. Infiltrating angiolipoma is rather rare. Only 23 cases have been reported in the English literature. Though histologically benign, the tumor can infiltrate bony, muscular, neural, and fibrocollagenous tissues to cause unusual symptoms and signs and can clinically simulate malignant neoplasms. Wide excision to include the normal tissue surrounding the tumor is mandatory. Radiotherapy should be rendered to cases with recurrence.

title: Cytogenetic analysis of subcutaneous angiolipoma: further evidence supporting its difference from ordinary pure lipomas: a report of the CHAMP Study Group.
abstract: Subcutaneous angiolipomas are benign soft-tissue lesions consisting of two mesenchymal elements (i.e., adipose tissue and blood vessels) and having distinct clinical features. They usually are multiple, with an obvious male predominance, and hereditary occurrence has been described. Twenty subcutaneous angiolipomas from 10 patients with typical clinical and morphologic features were reviewed. All lesions had a normal karyotype. This finding is in striking contrast with ordinary lipomas, spindle-cell and pleomorphic lipomas, lipoblastomas, and hibernomas, most of which have characteristic clonal chromosomal aberrations. The normal karyotype of subcutaneous angiolipoma as well as its distinct clinical and morphologic features suggest a different pathogenesis from pure lipomas.

title: Lumbar spinal angiolipoma: case report and review of the literature
abstract: Spinal angiolipomas are extremely rare benign tumors composed of mature lipomatous and angiomatous elements. Most are symptomatic due to progressive spinal cord or root compression. This article describes the case of a 60-year-old woman who presented with a 6-month history of low back pain radiating to her right leg. The pain was multisegmental. The condition had worsened with time. Lumbar magnetic resonance imaging revealed a dorsal epidural mass at L5 and erosion of the lamina of the L5 vertebra. Laminectomy was performed, and an extradural tumor was totally excised. Neuropathologic examination identified it as a lumbar spinal angiolipoma. There was no evidence of recurrence in follow-up 12 months later. This rare clinical entity must be considered in the differential diagnosis for any spinal epidural lesion.