The bulgarian school for diagnosis and treatment of vascular malformations and the leading role of stefan belov

Abstract

Vascular malformations (VM) are becoming more frequent but they are still inaccurately identified in everyday practice. Some clinical aspects of the VM have been known since ancient times but until recently only case reports have appeared in the literature, describing various vascular and bone syndromes, sometimes bearing the names of the authors (Klippel-Trenaunay, Parks-Weber, etc.), but without profound scientific investigation or presentation of reasonable curative methods. After the first VM pathology analysis and treatment, published by E. Malan, very few followed him. The most important name among them is no doubt Stefan Belov from Bulgaria. His profound and systematic investigation of more than 1000 patients gave him the possibility to understand the complex nature of VM, to see the common link the VM pathology and to create the universal and practical classification named the “Hamburg Classification.” His four unfamiliar operative techniques and some new pathophysiological phenomena have been presented in detail.