Received: 5 October 1999 In revised form: 6 April 2000 Accepted: 10 April 2000 Published online: 27 July 2000 © Springer-Verlag 2000 Abstract Introduction: Cavernous hemangiomas are the most frequent type of benign liver tumor. A large proportion are discovered unexpect- edly. The widespread use of ultra- sound (US) and computerized to- mography (CT) scanning has made diagnosis more common. Laparosco- pic liver surgery has, however, de- veloped more slowly. There have been only a few anecdotal reports of hepatic laparoscopic resections, most of which are limited to wedge resec- tions. Laparoscopic anatomical liver resections are still at an early stage of development. Discussion: This paper describes two cases of hepatic cavernous hemangiomas, both of which were removed laparoscopical- ly. No blood transfusion was neces- sary. No surgical complications oc- curred and the patients were dis- charged on the second postoperative day. We conclude that, depending on the size and location of the tumor, laparoscopic resection of liver hem- angiomas can be performed safely. Key words Hemangioma · Liver · Laparoscopy Langenbeck’s Arch Surg (2000) 385:363–365 DOI 10.1007/s004230000146 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Ugur Bengisun Serdar Ozbas Mehmet Gürel Arzu Ensari Laparoscopic hepatic wedge resection of hemangioma: report of two cases Introduction Hemangioma is the most common benign tumor of the liver [1, 2, 3, 4]. They occur in people of all ages, but are most frequently diagnosed in adults [5]. Most are small (<4 cm in diameter) and never give rise to symptoms or complications. Hemangiomas >4 cm in diameter are called giant hemangiomas. In most cases, they are asymptomatic and can generally be recognized in routine examinations or during laparotomy and/or laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Giant hemangiomas lead to symptoms such as tenderness and pain in the right upper quadrant, nausea, vomiting, jaundice, and thrombocytopenia. The widespread use of ultrasonography (US) and computed tomography (CT) has made diagnosis more common. The decision to treat patients is controversial in many cases and the main options are surgical treatment or con- servative management with periodical controls. Because of the potential risks associated with major surgery, the indications for surgical treatment have to be considered The manuscript was accepted as a video presentation at the 38th World Congress of Surgery ISW99, 15–20 August 1999, Vienna, Austria (Abstract Book: Number 469) U. Bengisun · S. Ozbas · M. Gürel Department of General Surgery, Ankara University School of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey A. Ensari Department of Pathology, Ankara University School of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey S. Ozbas Efeler mahallesi, Eylül sokak, Kaya apt. No: 4/1, 09020 Aydin, Turkey