Resection of Orbital Rhabdomyosarcoma in an Infant with the Aid of Preoperative Partial Arterial Embolization

Abstract

Since the introduction of non-invasive imaging techniques (CT, US, MRI), super selective cerebrospinal angiography has been playing a major role as a diagnostic tool as well as a therapeutic procedure prior to surgery or as an alternative. Surgical neuroangiography is currently a well-established therapeutic technique in neuropediatrics even in newborns or infants with vascular lesions in different parts of the body. Rhabdomyosarcoma is a malignant solid tumor arising from mesenchymal tissue that primarily affects children. We describe the procedure used to treat a large vascularized orbital rhabdomyosarcoma in a 38-day-old infant with application of partial tumor vascular bed embolization via external carotid end internal maxillary artery using PVA particles prior to gross excisional biopsy. We stress the significance of the preoperative embolization in infants with large highly vascularized tumor in order to reduce surgical blood loss and increase the probability of maximum lesion resection.