Endoscopic endonasal removal of a cavernous hemangioma of the orbital apex

BACKGROUND: Cavernous hemangioma are the most common benign lesions of the orbit. Their surgical resection is still challenging and several surgical approaches have been proposed. CASE DESCRIPTION: We present the case of a 59-year-old woman with a cavernous hemangioma of the orbital apex, which was diagnosed incidentally. The hemangioma was extraconal and involved mainly the medial orbital apex; it also extended to the pterygoid fossa, to the middle fossa, to the maxillary and sphenoid sinuses. The surgical resection was performed by a pure endoscopic transphenoidal, transmaxillary, transethmoidal approach, achieving a total removal. The patient had a transient and incomplete paresis of the VI cranial nerve on the left side and did not experience other postoperative complications. CONCLUSION: The endoscopic endonasal approach proved successful in the management of this case and it should be considered in the surgical management of extraconal orbital apex lesions with medial or inferior extension.