Introduction
Hemangiomas are benign vascular tumors that originate from either
endothelial cells lining the vessels or pericytes that are found outside
the vascular wall.1 They consist of multiple
anastomosing vessels lined by a single layer of endothelium. Hemangiomas
are named ‘capillary’ when they are composed of small size capillary
vessels, and ‘cavernous’ if they consist of large anastomosing vascular
spaces (‘caverns’).1–5 They rarely occur in the
uterus and the exact incidence of uterine hemangioma is unknown.
Hemangioma can be found at all levels of the uterine wall, although most
cases involve the myometrium.6 The lesion has been
described in various age groups and is known to have many heterogenous
clinical presentations, commonly reported in the context of obstetric
complications.1–3
Current literature on uterine hemangioma in pregnancy mainly consists of
case reports. The hormonal and physical changes of pregnancy have been
proposed to affect these pre-existing lesions. The most reported
complication is peripartum hemorrhage which can be
life-threatening.2,7 Diagnosis is often made on
hysterectomy specimens or more recently through antepartum imaging, by
ultrasound (US) and/or magnetic resonance imaging
(MRI).8
Herein we present a recent case in our tertiary care center followed by
a systematic review of all published uterine hemangioma cases in
pregnant women.