Doxycycline sclerotherapy in children with macrocystic lymphatic malformations: A single centre experience.

Lymphatic malformations (LMs) are common vascular malformations in infants and children, and account for about 5% of all benign tumours. Lesions can be classified as macrocystic, microcystic, mixed, and solid. Surgical resection has been considered standard treatment for these lesions, despite recurrences in 15-53% of reported clinical series. Significant complications in up to 1/3 of cases, including nerve paralysis, have been reported after operative resection. For these reasons, intralesional sclerotherapy has been attempted with varying agents including bleomycin, doxycycline, ethanol, OK-432, and STS, with excellent response in 20-64% of patients. Complications from sclerotherapy have been observed in 22-46% of patients, including nerve damage, persistent pain and skin ulceration. The aim of this study is to appraise the results of sclerotherapy for macrocystic LMs at Monash Children’s Hospital using doxycycline in the last 5 years.