Abstract
Biliary hamartomas result from abnormal embryologic development of the ductal plate. They are the most common variant of fibropolycystic liver disease, which includes also Caroli disease, choledochal cysts, polycystic liver disease, and congenital hepatic fibrosis. They are also called von Meyenburg complexes, and typically are small cystic lesions (less than 1.5 cm), encountered as an incidental finding on imaging exams. The gold standard for the diagnosis is magnetic resonance, which demonstrates the cystic lesions in the intrahepatic biliary tree. Usually, they are benign lesions, and the risk of malignancy is extremely rare.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
von Meyenburg H. Über die cystenleber. Beitr Path Anat. 1918;64:477–532.
Chung EB. Multiple bile-duct hamartomas. Cancer. 1970;26(2):287–96. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-0142(197008)26:2<287::aid-cncr2820260207>3.0.co;2-v.
Lin S, Weng Z, Xu J, Wang MF, Zhu YY, Jiang JJ. A study of multiple biliary hamartomas based on 1697 liver biopsies. Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2013;25(8):948–52. https://doi.org/10.1097/MEG.0b013e32835fb9ee.
Redston MS, Wanless IR. The hepatic von Meyenburg complex: prevalence and association with hepatic and renal cysts among 2843 autopsies [corrected]. Mod Pathol. 1996;9(3):233–7.
Kenney BJD. Ductal plate malformations. In: Ferrell L, Kakar S, editors. Liver pathology. New York: Demos Medical Publishing; 2011.
Si-Tayeb K, Lemaigre FP, Duncan SA. Organogenesis and development of the liver. Dev Cell. 2010;18(2):175–89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2010.01.011.
Cannella R, Giambelluca D, Diamarco M, Caruana G, Cutaia G, Midiri M, Salvaggio G. Congenital cystic lesions of the bile ducts: imaging-based diagnosis. Curr Probl Diagn Radiol. 2019;49:285. https://doi.org/10.1067/j.cpradiol.2019.04.005.
Drenth JP, Chrispijn M, Bergmann C. Congenital fibrocystic liver diseases. Best Pract Res Clin Gastroenterol. 2010;24(5):573–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpg.2010.08.007.
Bornfors M. The development of cholangiocarcinoma from multiple bile-duct adenomas. Report of a case and review of the literature. Acta Pathol Microbiol Immunol Scand A. 1984;92(4):285–9. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1699-0463.1984.tb04405.x.
Burns CD, Kuhns JG, Wieman TJ. Cholangiocarcinoma in association with multiple biliary microhamartomas. Arch Pathol Lab Med. 1990;114(12):1287–9.
Honda N, Cobb C, Lechago J. Bile duct carcinoma associated with multiple von Meyenburg complexes in the liver. Hum Pathol. 1986;17(12):1287–90. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0046-8177(86)80575-5.
Jain D, Ahrens W, Finkelstein S. Molecular evidence for the neoplastic potential of hepatic von Meyenburg complexes. Appl Immunohistochem Mol Morphol. 2010;18(2):166–71. https://doi.org/10.1097/PAI.0b013e3181b94fd8.
Merkel D, Wiens D, Kammer J. The “dirty liver” as a coincidental finding on sonography: sonographic criteria for biliary microhamartomas of the liver. J Ultrasound Med. 2016;35(10):2139–45. https://doi.org/10.7863/ultra.15.11081.
Liu S, Zhao B, Ma J, Li J, Li X. Lesions of biliary hamartomas can be diagnosed by ultrasonography, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Int J Clin Exp Med. 2014;7(10):3370–7.
Pech L, Favelier S, Falcoz MT, Loffroy R, Krause D, Cercueil JP. Imaging of von Meyenburg complexes. Diagn Interv Imaging. 2016;97(4):401–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.diii.2015.05.012.
Zheng RQ, Zhang B, Kudo M, Onda H, Inoue T. Imaging findings of biliary hamartomas. World J Gastroenterol. 2005;11(40):6354–9. https://doi.org/10.3748/wjg.v11.i40.6354.
Tohme-Noun C, Cazals D, Noun R, Menassa L, Valla D, Vilgrain V. Multiple biliary hamartomas: magnetic resonance features with histopathologic correlation. Eur Radiol. 2008;18(3):493–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-007-0790-z.
Mortele KJ, Ros PR. Cystic focal liver lesions in the adult: differential CT and MR imaging features. Radiographics. 2001;21(4):895–910. https://doi.org/10.1148/radiographics.21.4.g01jl16895.
Kudo M. Hepatic peribiliary cysts: clinically harmless disease with potential risk due to gradual increase in size and number. J Gastroenterol. 2001;36(4):286–8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s005350170119.
Mamone G, Carollo V, Cortis K, Aquilina S, Liotta R, Miraglia R. Magnetic resonance imaging of fibropolycystic liver disease: the spectrum of ductal plate malformations. Abdom Radiol (NY). 2019;44(6):2156–71. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00261-019-01966-9.
Bachler P, Baladron MJ, Menias C, Beddings I, Loch R, Zalaquett E, Vargas M, Connolly S, Bhalla S, Huete A. Multimodality imaging of liver infections: differential diagnosis and potential pitfalls. Radiographics. 2016;36(4):1001–23. https://doi.org/10.1148/rg.2016150196.
Bricault I. Biliary obstruction: not always simple! Diagn Interv Imaging. 2013;94(7–8):729–40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.diii.2013.03.011.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2021 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Motta, R., Pirazzini, A., Lupi, A., Marchesi, P., Giraudo, C., Floreani, A. (2021). Biliary Hamartomas. In: Floreani, A. (eds) Diseases of the Liver and Biliary Tree. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-65908-0_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-65908-0_3
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-65907-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-65908-0
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)