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Resolution of Brachial Plexus Palsy Due to Hemangioma After Intravenous Corticosteroid Therapy

Brachial Plexus Center, Miami Children's Hospital, Department of Neurology, Miami Children's Hospital

Daniel T. Alfonso, MD

Hospital for Joint Diseases, New York

Patricia Flores, MD

Department of Radiology, Miami Children's Hospital, Miami, Florida

John A. I. Grossman, MD

Brachial Plexus Center, Miami Children's Hospital, Hospital for Joint Diseases, New York

Ricardo Restrepo, MD

Department of Radiology, Miami Children's Hospital, Miami, Florida

Israel Alfonso, MD

Brachial Plexus Center, Miami Children's Hospital, Florida International University, Miami, Florida, Department of Neurology, Miami Children's Hospital, ialfonso{at}pediatricneuro.com

The authors report a 7-day-old girl born with a hemangioma involving the right side of the scalp and neck who developed ipsilateral brachial plexus palsy at 5 days of age. Imaging studies confirmed the presence of a cavernous hemangioma in the vicinity of the brachial plexus. She was treated with intravenous corticosteroids and her palsy resolved in 5 days. Only 1 prior case of hemangioma producing brachial plexus palsy has been reported; this patient was not treated with corticosteroids and had a partial recovery. The authors believe that the quick recovery after initiating systemic steroids was due to relief of nerve compression (neuropraxia) resulting from shrinkage of the cavernous hemangioma. The purpose of this article is to describe an uncommon cause of neonatal brachial plexus palsy and to report the effectiveness of early intravenous corticosteroid treatment in a patient with brachial plexus palsy due to a cavernous hemangioma.

Key Words: brachial plexus palsy • hemangioma • corticosteroid treatment

Journal of Child Neurology, Vol. 23, No. 8, 956-958 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/0883073808315346


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