Cervical Paravertebral Osteolipoma: Case Report and Literature Review

Abstract

Lipomas are the most frequent soft tissue tumors. Osteolipomas are a rare variant that can be difficult to diagnose. We report the case of a 66-year-old man consulting with a tumor of 2 years development in the right paravertebral cervical region. Neurologically, the patient had no sign of myelopathy or neurological focality. Magnetic resonance imaging showed a mass with a lipid component and calcifications inside within the right paravertebral musculature with a possible origin in the right C3 posterior root. A computed tomography scan and guided biopsy were performed, revealing hematic material and small bone spicules with no apparent neoplastic element. The tumor was totally removed, including the right C3 posterior branch, and was confirmed to be an osteolipoma on biopsy. The patient remains asymptomatic at 6-month follow-up. The osteolipoma is a benign tumor of soft tissue, characterized by lipoma areas with mature bone tissue differentiation, and even with hematopoietic marrow.

Ossifying lipoma: literature review and analysis of radiological imaging

“…Ossifying lipomas are generally soft, palpable subcutaneous masses that are round or discoid in shape [1]. They are generally well-defined [5,6].…”

“…Lipomas are benign tumors consisting primarily of mature adipocytes [1]. Lipomas tend to occur in patients over 30 years of age, with equal incidences in men and women.…”

“…Ossifying lipomas have been documented in the head and neck area, upper and lower extremities, sternoclavicular region, and in subcutaneous soft tissue [3]. The presentation of ossifying lipoma is often asymptomatic, and as a result most cases are not detected for years [1]. In addition, ossifying lipomas may share overlapping clinical and radiological characteristics with benign tumors as well as malignant neoplasms [3].…”

“…Histological examination is often the most useful tool in making a definitive diagnosis of ossifying lipoma [4]. Surgical excision is often the treatment for ossifying lipoma [1,[4][5][6]. The prognosis for ossifying lipomas is the same as that of conventional lipomas [1], but due to the scarcity of clinical knowledge about ossifying lipomas, patients should receive long-term follow-up [4].…”

Bilateral hamartomatous medullary lipoma within the nasal turbinate bones in a cynomolgus monkey (<i>Macaca fascicularis</i>)

“…Intraosseous lipomas are subdivided into three groups, depending on the degree of involution [24]. Once the tumor affects a long bone or a bone with wide marrow space, the tumor tissue extends into the marrow space [3, 12, 15, 34]. Such a lipoma is called “medullary”.…”