Background
Cystic lymphangioma is a kind of rare benign cystic developmental disease entity, mostly affected cervical and axial regions. Clinical features of abdominal cystic lymphangiomas (ACL) was reported among childhood but unclear for adult ACL. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the clinical characteristics of Chinese adult ACL patients and introduce our experience of treating this disease.
Methods
We conducted a single-centered non-intervention retrospective study of 12 adult ACL patients who admitted to Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH, Beijing, China) from November 1984 to August 2017. The demographic, clinical, laboratory, imaging, histologic and therapeutic data were collected.
Results
Detailed information of 7 male and 5 female was available. The mean age at dianosis was 39.1 (17.3) years. The mean duration of follow-up was 6.9 years. Six (50%) patients were asymptomatic and abdominal pain was the leading symptom for three (25%) patients. The cysts were evaluated by ultrasound (n=8, 67%), CT (n=10, 83%) and MRI (n=4, 33%). Theraputic modalities include laparotomy (n=6, 50%), laparoscopy (n=4, 33%) and aspiration (n=2, 17%), with a variable response. Mean postoperation hospital stay was 6.8 days. Complete excision was accomplished among 8 patients and only one relapse was observed during follow-up. One partial resection patients reported disease reccurence.
Conclusions
This is the first Asian cohort of adult ACL patients. Typical imaging features could lead to timely diagnosis and treatment. Radical resection is recommended for ACL with a longer period of follow-up. The analysis of this cohort deepens our understanding of adult ACL.