Diagnosis and treatment of pediatric vascular anomalies BY PATRICIA BURROWS, MD, AND DAWN SIEGEL, MD

Vascular anomalies are a diverse group of related conditions that include vascular tumors (hemangiomas) and vascular malformations (capillary malformations, venous malformations, lymphatic malformations and arteriovenous malformations). In the past decade or so, research has revealed the genetic or molecular basis for some of these lesions. We now know that a number of hereditary vascular malformations are caused by specific mutations (e.g., hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia, capillary malformation-arteriovenous malformation and CLOVES syndrome), and somatic mutations are either known or suspected to cause aberrant vascular development leading to other vascular malformations.