Spinal lobular capillary hemangioma with an intramedullary component.

Capillary hemangiomas are benign vascular neoplasms rarely involving the spinal cord, where their usual location is extramedullary. A 59-year-old man presented with a 7-month history of progressive numbness which began in the left lower extremity and progressed across the lower back, right flank, trunk and into the right lower extremity with associated pressure and pain in his lower back. On magnetic resonance imaging, there was an avidly-enhancing thoracic intradural lesion that contained an extramedullary intradural component posteriorly, with an apparent intramedullary component anteriorly. Laminectomy of T7 - 8 was performed, and intradural exploration revealed a highly vascular-appearing tumor below the arachnoid, which was not completely dissected because it was densely adherent to the spinal cord. The pathological diagnosis was lobular capillary hemangioma with extra- and intramedullary components. We suggest this lesion should be considered in the differential diagnosis of spinal cord tumors with an intramedullary component.