Strawberry hemangioma of infancy: early definitive treatment with an argon laser.

This report documents the successful treatment of a hemangioma (strawberry hemangioma) at 5 weeks of age with the argon laser. The natural course of strawberry hemangioma of infancy is well known. It begins as a very small spot and develops very rapidly within the first few weeks of life. Many grow to a very large size and produce significant morbidity. It is logical to assume that if these were ablated early, the life cycle could be aborted. The patient of this case study developed two spots that appeared to be typical evolving hemangiomas. One was treated and disappeared. The other was not treated and evolved into a typical strawberry hemangioma that eventually involuted. This would indicate that early treatment holds some promise.