Vascular anomalies can be present at birth or develop after birth. Symptoms include visible changes of the color and appearance of the skin or masses deep within the skin. Vascular anomalies include blood vessel tumors, such as infantile hemangiomas, and vascular malformations, such as venous, lymphatic and arteriovenous malformations and port-wine stains (also known as capillary malformations).
Infantile hemangiomas are a commonly occurring growth of blood vessels in the skin or internal organs. The red or purple lesions usually occur a few weeks or months after birth. They usually grow very fast at first, and then growth slows down or stops. Some hemangiomas may disappear without treatment. Fifty percent of infantile hemangiomas (tumors) shrink by 5 years of age, 70 percent of hemangiomas shrink by 7 years of age and 90 percent by age 9.
Vascular malformations do not regress but can grow with patients as they grow. At times, these can be associated with pain, increased clotting or bleeding.
The Vascular Anomalies Program at Riley at IU Health provides high-quality, advanced care for children with vascular anomalies, helping restore a more normal appearance and function. Children with vascular anomalies who require treatment receive care from our multidisciplinary team that includes board certified doctors who are specialty-trained in:
Riley at IU Health is a regional and national referral center for many medical specialties. While it can be difficult to decide where to seek treatment for your child and their unique condition, be assured that your child will be in caring, expert hands from diagnosis to treatment, recovery and beyond.
Our pediatric specialists provide patient- and family-centered care for most related conditions. The links below provide more specific information about some, but not all, of the conditions that we treat.
We offer a number of different Vascular Anomalies Program services. Below are some, but not all, of the services that we provide. If you have a question about a specific service that is not listed here, please contact our program.
Learn more about the medical team that makes up the Vascular Anomalies Program at Riley at IU Health.
In addition to our primary hospital location at the Academic Health Center in Indianapolis, IN, we have convenient locations to better serve our communities throughout the state.
The Vascular Anomalies Program at Riley at IU Health provides the following forms for parents, healthcare providers and personnel. We have also curated relevant resources from other websites and provided links with brief descriptions of the information that is available.
The Hemangioma Investigator Group provides this educational website for parents of children with infantile hemangiomas.
This is a parent organization for patients with a complicated infantile hemangioma associated with PHACE syndrome.
National Organization of Vascular Anomalies (NOVA)
This organization provides resources regarding a wide variety of vascular anomalies on its website.
Foundation for Faces of Children
This nonprofit organization provides educational resources and support to families of children born with vascular anomalies and other craniofacial conditions.
This foundation helps families with children who have facial anomalies and provides information on its website about vascular anomalies.
We provide multispecialty care for a number of conditions. Below are links to our related programs & departments.
The Vascular Anomalies Program at Riley at IU Health works with referring physicians to provide advanced diagnosis and treatment for patients with vascular malformations and hemangiomas.
Riley at IU Health works with referring physicians in Indiana and beyond.
Physicians can refer their patients by calling the Outpatient Dermatology Department at 317.944.7744.
In partnership with the Indiana University School of Medicine, Riley at IU Health provides a wide variety of excellent training opportunities for medical students, residents and fellows. The Vascular Anomalies Program offers observational opportunities for residents and fellows.
