Is it serious if a liver hemangioma occasionally causes needle-prick-like pain?

Written by Liu Wu Cai
Hepatobiliary Surgery
Updated on September 03, 2024
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For patients with liver hemangiomas, if they occasionally experience needle-like pain, the condition is relatively mild at that time, but regular follow-up ultrasound exams are still needed to monitor changes in the condition. The diet should primarily be light, including plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits, avoiding hard-to-digest foods, and avoiding spicy and irritating foods to reduce inflammatory stimulation, which is beneficial for controlling the condition. Of course, if the hemangioma is large, it may cause local compression symptoms, primarily characterized by persistent pain in the liver area. For such cases, surgery should be performed as soon as possible to achieve a cure and improve the patient's prognosis.

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Written by Liu Wu Cai
Hepatobiliary Surgery
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Do liver hemangiomas need to be treated?

Whether treatment is needed for liver hemangiomas mainly depends on the size and volume of the hemangioma and whether there are any symptoms. For patients with liver hemangiomas, those with relatively large volumes may experience liver bleeding or even affect liver function. In such cases, surgical treatment should be performed. The surgery can be done through interventional procedures to achieve ligation, which can cure the condition. Of course, for patients with smaller liver hemangiomas, there are generally no obvious symptoms, and most are only discovered during ultrasound examinations. There is no need to be overly worried or to undertake special treatments in such cases. Regular ultrasound check-ups to dynamically observe any changes in volume are sufficient. However, if the condition worsens, early treatment should be administered to improve the prognosis for the patient.

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Written by Liu Wu Cai
Hepatobiliary Surgery
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What is causing the right-sided distension and pain in a liver hemangioma?

Patients with hepatic hemangioma primarily experience discomfort and pain in the upper right abdomen. Hepatic hemangioma is a benign tumor, but there is a possibility of rupture and hemorrhage, leading to hemorrhagic shock. Therefore, patients with symptomatic hepatic hemangioma should be treated promptly to prevent complications. For patients with hepatic hemangioma who experience discomfort and pain in the upper right abdomen and liver area, early surgical intervention is advised. The primary approach for surgery is interventional surgery, which can achieve better therapeutic effects. Additionally, patients with asymptomatic hepatic hemangioma still require regular follow-up with ultrasound to monitor any changes in the size of the tumor.

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Written by Li Hu Chen
Imaging Center
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Can liver hemangioma be definitively diagnosed by ultrasound?

If there is a hemangioma on the liver, it can generally be diagnosed through an ultrasound of the liver and biliary system. This is because hemangiomas have some characteristic appearances on ultrasound imaging. First, it's essential to understand the structure of the liver hemangioma which can be roughly considered as sponge-like, with a structure similar to a sponge containing many fine structures. When ultrasound is applied, this sponge-like structure will demonstrate strong echogenicity, appearing as a large mass with medium to strong echogenic responses. Thus, it is quite evident on ultrasound and has relatively high specificity, so it can generally be diagnosed through ultrasound. If the appearance is not typical, further examination with an enhanced CT scan can be carried out for diagnosis.

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Written by Liu Wu Cai
Hepatobiliary Surgery
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Will liver hemangioma increase cancer embryonic antigen?

Generally speaking, hepatocellular adenomas do not exhibit elevated levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA). Regarding hepatocellular adenomas, they are benign liver lesions and typically do not cause any noticeable symptoms in patients. They are most often discovered during ultrasound examinations. Patients with larger hepatocellular adenomas may experience pain in the liver area, and there is also a possibility of rupture and bleeding. Therefore, early surgical intervention is advisable, as surgery can yield excellent treatment outcomes. However, generally, patients with hepatocellular adenomas do not exhibit an increase in CEA. Elevated tumor markers and increased CEA are found in patients with malignant liver tumors.

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Written by Liu Wu Cai
Hepatobiliary Surgery
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Why is it not recommended to perform surgery on hepatic hemangiomas?

Patients with hepatic hemangioma generally do not exhibit obvious symptoms, and most cases are discovered during color Doppler ultrasound examinations. Hence, surgical treatment is not required at this time. It is possible to regularly re-examine the color Doppler ultrasound dynamics and monitor any changes in volume. However, for large hepatic hemangiomas, complications such as rupture, bleeding, and even life-threatening hemorrhagic shock may occur, leading to death. Therefore, early surgical treatment is advised for such cases. The primary method is minimally invasive surgery achieved through interventional procedures. Post-surgery, regular follow-up with color Doppler ultrasound is also necessary to dynamically observe any changes in the condition.