Pattern of angiomas in the Igbos of Nigeria.

Almost all angiomas fall into three main groups--hemangioma, lymphangioma, and glomangioma. Fifty-one such angiomas were found in approximately 7500 surgical specimens examined at a central laboratory serving the Igbos of Nigeria. The youngest patient was aged 19 days and the oldest 70 years. Most patients presented in the first two decades of life and both sexes were equally affected. Hemangiomas greatly outnumbered the other angiomas; most were cavernous and tended to thrombose, fibrose, or calcify. Lymphangiomas frequently exhibited lymphoid tissue, some showing germinal centers. Glomangiomas occurred mostly in the upper extremity as small, painful masses.