Introduction and Aim: Head and Neck Lymphangiomas (HNL) are generally large in volume, surrounding important anatomical structures. As a current treatment, surgical removal is associated with special risk of aesthetic deformity and functional damage. This medical group studied the sclerosing effects of OK-432 therapy as an alternative treatment for HNL in children. Study design: Clinical retrospective. Material and Method: Retrospective study of six children patients with diagnosis of HNL treated by picibanil injection at HC-FMRP-USP from 1997 to 2001. It was studied the following HNL characteristics: dimension, type of HNL and aspirated volume. We studied the time between and number of picibanil injections, the patient's evolution, complications and final results. Results: It was found diameter variation from 8 to 15 cm, with the macro cystic been the most frequent type of cystic higroma, the volume aspirated varied from 2 to 60 ml. The number of injections varied from one to five and the time interval between the injections from one month to one year. All patients experienced tumoral mass regression with total regression occurring in three patients. The only side effect registered was fever, mean of 38º Celsius degrees, happened in all patients. Conclusion: OK 432 is a safe drug and can be used as first treatment choice in HNL.
Picibanil; lymphangioma; cystic higroma; cystic lymphangioma
