Cerebral vascular hamartomas in five dogs

Vascular hamartomas are considered developmental lesions rather than true neoplasms. Reports of such anomalies in the canine brain are scarce, and their classification is confusing. This case series of vascular hamartomas from the brains of five dogs was characterized using histochemistry and immunohistochemistry, in addition to gross and microscopic findings. All five hamartomas were located in the telencephalon, three in the pyriform lobe, without any predilection for the left or right side. Each hamartoma consisted of a proliferation of thin-walled vessels which varied in caliber. These vessels were elastin-negative, with varying amounts of collagen and no muscular component. In four of the five hamartomas, lining cells were actin- and factor VIII-positive. All five hamartomas contained glial fibrillary acid protein (GFAP)-positive parenchyma at moderate to high frequency, and four contained neurofilament-positive axons between component vessels. This report shows that vascular hamartomas in the canine brain are structural malformations for which immunohistochemistry is useful for accurate classification.