What is a lipoma? Its Causes, diagnosis and possible treatments
Tuesday, June 30, 2020
What is a lipoma? Its Causes, diagnosis and possible treatments
INTRODUCTION OF LIPOMA:
A lipoma is a benign tumor that is made up of fatty tissue cells that form adipose tissue. They usually occur under the skin.
Lipomas can appear anywhere in the body, although they predominate in the neck, trunk and back, being uncommon in the extremities.
The treatment of a lipoma is not usually necessary, unless it causes pain, restricts movement or presents characteristics that make one suspect its benignity. To solve it, surgical removal is necessary.
In this article we could try to explain the Lipoma according to the following six questions:
1. What are lipomas?
2. What types of lipomas exist?
3. What causes the appearance of lipomas?
4. What symptoms do lipomas have?
5. Lipoma diagnosis
6. How are lipomas treated?
1. What are lipomas?
Lipomas are benign soft tumors and are formed by adipose tissue cells. Among the characteristics of lipomas we can highlight that they are soft to the touch, rounded, well delineated and normally not painful. They can also move when touched, since they are not attached to deep planes of the skin.
Benign tumors of adipose tissue can appear at any location in the body that contains fat. Most occur in the upper half of the body, particularly in the trunk and neck; Other common situations include the proximal portions of the arm, thigh and buttocks. So Lipoma can be define the as:
“A lipoma is a lump of slow-growing fat that generally lies between the skin and the underlying muscle layer.”
Usually developing age
Commonly lipomas develop in adults between 40 and 60 years of age. Their frequency increases with age, although they can also be found in young adults and children, very rarely in the latter.
Hereditary factor of Lipoma
In the case that many lipomas appear, it is called lipomatosis, in many cases having hereditary character.
What types of lipomas exist?
With regard to the type of lipomas based on their shape and internal characteristics, lipomas can be fibrolipomas, myxolipomas, chondroids, myolipomas, spindle cell lipoma, angiomyolipoma, lipoblastoma and hibernoma. The most common are:
Angiomyolipoma It is a painful nodule, located under the skin, frequently occurs in the forearm and is more common in adults. It can be multiple and confused histologically (study of the microscopic structure, composition and function of tissues) with Kaposi's sarcoma or angiosarcoma.
Fusocellular lipoma It is characterized by being a painless, consistent and usually located nodule in the back and / or neck. These types of lipomas are more common in men between 40 - 75 years of age.
Polymorphic lipomas. It is a rare lesion next to fusiform cells (long and thin appearance under a microscope) and lipocytes (cells that form adipose tissue).
Intermuscular and intramuscular lipomas. They are lipomas that can reach large size, generally, they are located in the lower extremities. These lipomas infiltrate the muscle and grow around the peripheral nerves.
You can learn more about lipomas according to their location in the following links:
Lipomas in the back
Lipomas in the neck
Lipomas in the arm
Lipomas in the abdomen
Single lipomas are more frequent in women, whereas lipomatosis (multiple lipomas) occurs more often in men.
Apart from these types of lipomas, we can classify them as cutaneous (superficial) or deep.
The differences between these types of lipomas are:
Cutaneous or superficial lipomas: this is when the lipoma is located in superficial soft tissues (subcutaneous cellular tissue, below the skin). They are usually located on the back, shoulders or neck. In less frequent cases they can also be located in the arms, buttocks or thighs.
Deep lipomas: tend to be firmer. Its origin is intraosseous, intermuscular and intramuscular. This type of lipomas is less frequent and its location and growth may go unnoticed. They can be located in places like hands, feet, gums, tongue, etc. Although the latter cases are less frequent. They can produce clinical compression, especially nervous, in their growth, in addition to limiting mobility.
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What causes the appearance of lipomas?
The exact cause for which a lipoma occurs is unknown, however, there are factors that may increase the risk of developing a lipoma. The factors that usually favor the appearance of one or several lipomas are, mainly:
Family history of lipoma. This factor is only confirmed when it comes to lipomatosis (multiple lipomas in the body), generally, this tendency occurs among direct relatives, being called multiple familial lipomatosis.
Due to bumps or injuries. Lipomas may appear in those places where a stroke has been received.
Obesity or overweight. Since lipomas are lumps formed by adipose tissue, fat, weight gain greatly favors the formation of lipomas, although this is inconclusive, since despite this, they can also appear in people who are thin.
Alcohol consumption Excessive alcohol consumption increases the risk of lipomas.
Medical conditions. Liver diseases or high blood glucose levels cause their appearance.
"A lipoma can be due to causes as disparate as genes, a stroke or obesity."
What symptoms do lipomas have?
Symptoms of Lipoma:
The symptoms of a lipoma are usually null, since they rarely cause discomfort or pain.
Most of the time the lipoma is discovered when it is palpable and is seen as a soft, rounded lump that moves under the skin. When the lipoma grows very slowly and moves under the skin we are facing a benign lipoma.
Lipoma diagnosis
When diagnosing a lipoma, the specialist can perform different tests:
Questions about the patient's medical history
Physical exam
Biopsy (removal of a sample of lipoma tissues)
Ultrasound
These tests will confirm or dismiss if it is a lipoma or if there is a possibility that it is a liposarcoma, that is, a cancerous tumor that grows rapidly, that never move under the skin and it is painful. To correctly distinguish one from another it is advisable to go to the specialist.
Most of these benign tumors do not require treatment, but when they bother and grow rapidly they can be addressed with different procedures ranging from steroid injections to tumor removal.
How are lipomas treated?
As we have said before, lipomas are not usually painful or cause complications, so treatment is not always necessary. Usually, the treatment of a lipoma is performed when it is painful, restricts movement or simply for aesthetic reasons.
The treatments that exist to eliminate one or several lipomas are simple interventions that can be either by means of corticosteroid injection or liposuction techniques as well as by means of a minor or ambulatory surgery, surgical excision. These treatments consist of:
Liposuction
Lipomas of different sizes can be removed and scars are prevented. It is done with a needle and a syringe, to remove the lump of fat.
Using this technique it is difficult for the lipoma to disappear completely. With this procedure, the specialist by aspiration and suction performs the removal of the lipoma. Aided by a small incision through which the liposuctor is introduced.
Does liposuction permanently eliminate lipomas?
The technique of lipomas removal through liposuction is not usually as effective as the surgical removal of lipomas since, after a longer or shorter period, it is possible for the lipoma to reappear.
Is anesthesia required?
In very small lipomas, smaller than 2.5 cm in diameter, it is possible that no type of anesthesia is required. In the event that this treatment is used and the lipoma has larger dimensions, it is possible for the specialist to resort to the application of local anesthesia.
“Generally, lipomas do not require treatment, but if the removal is performed, depending on the size and location of the tumor, it may be sufficient to perform a simple surgery with local anesthesia”
Surgical removal
It is the most commonly used technique to remove a lipoma, since it is the only technique that ensures complete removal of it.
For the surgical removal of one or several lipomas, the doctor makes a small incision in the skin after having previously anesthetized the area of surgery.
How long does lipoma removal surgery last?
Surgical removal of lipomas is a simple and short-term operation, between 30 and 60 minutes, depending on each case and the amount of lipomas to be removed.
What anesthesia is used in the surgical removal of lipomas?
Generally, during a lipoma removal surgery, local anesthesia is used.
Is lipoma surgery permanent?
In most cases, lipoma removal surgery has permanent effects, that is, lipomas do not reappear in the area over time.
